Brothers 101
by the girl you wouldn't expect
Summary: A bunch of short stories of Hiro's and Tadashi's life that take place before the movie. mostly fluff and sibling love. Also, I'll explain how they get along and that they weren't always so close with each other, especially right after their parents death. Crappy summary, but I for one love sibling love so that's why I enjoy writing these. maybe I'll make a story with a plot later.
1. Chapter 1

Brothers

A Big Hero 6 Fan-fiction

Just some cute stories of Hiro and Tadashi's life. I might write an actual story later, but for now it's just fluffy moments and maybe even some over protective Tadashi stuff. Also, I'm gonna change the ages a lot in these little stories. This is pretty much all prior to movie stuff and therefore will most likely not contain spoilers.

Ages

Hiro: 11

Tadashi: 15

Hiro POV

I woke up with a loud yawn and big stretch. I look around and let my eyes settle on Tadashi's bed with a smile. Every time I look at him, it reminds me how I still have someone left to take care of me, although he can be over the top sometimes- scratch that- ALL the time. Don't get me wrong, Aunt Cass is great, but she's just not direct family, so it's a little different. I push the covers off of me and head to the bathroom.

After brushing my teeth and changing, I open the door to get back into mine and Tadashi's shared room, but I wish I hadn't.

Tadashi came literally out of nowhere, grabbed me, tackled me on my bed, and gave me a panic attack.

"GAH! Tadashi!? What the heck? It's only like 8:00 in the morning! Isn't it a bit early for this?" I question, secretly hiding a smirk. Tadashi scratched his head with a sheepish chuckle.

"Couldn't help it baby bro. opportunity came knocking and you know what they say." Tadashi said innocently, backing away from me. I chuckle at his response.

When he finally turned all the way around, I struck. I jumped onto my older brother and clung onto his back like a gorilla, not willing to let go. I must've really surprised Tadashi though, because he fell to the ground, taking me with him.

"Ouch! Hiro, I think I hit my head." Tadashi said in pain. I immediately felt bad and got up in a flash.

"I'm so sorry Tadashi! I didn't mean to! I swear. I was only trying to-"

I was cut short when the little faker reached for my feet and dragged me from his back so I was facing upside-down. "What the? TADASHI!" I screamed, angry that he was joking, but secretly amused.

"Ha, little bro-0 older, better looking bro 1." Tadashi said smugly. I rolled my eyes, but none the less smiled.

"Alright, you had your fun, now put me down." I say. He smirks, which is never a good sign because he rarely does, but when it happens, I end up either breathlessly tickled or dizzy.

"I don't think so little brother." Tadashi says mischievously, beginning to spin me around. Being spun around added to the fact that I was upside-down didn't do well to my head.

Normal POV

"Ahhh! T-Tadashi p-put me d-d-d-own N-NOW!" Hiro screamed, getting dizzier by the millisecond.

"Not until you admit I'm the alpha sibling."

"Ha! Like hell Tadashi."

"What's that? Spin faster you say?!" Tadashi asks teasingly, spinning at an intense speed.

"Wahhhh! Tadashi pleeeeeaaaaaaseeeee!" Hiro begged.

"Admit it."

"Never."

"Then I guess someone's about to puke."

"Tadashi I will murder you when this ends!" Hiro swore.

"Admit I'm better looking and smarter."

"You're the one who taught me not to lie big guy!"

Oh Hiro, you're just asking for this nausea." Tadashi said, showing no signs of getting tired.

Hiro was beginning to get sick and couldn't take much more of this torture.

"Alright alright! You win. You're right!" Hiro cried in an act of desperateness.

Tadashi hummed, thinking it over. "I dunno Hiro, my fee's seem to have gone up. Now you have to say that I'm the best big brother in the whole world and you'll never be as smart as me. Oh, and you have to make breakfast for me today." Tadashi said playfully.

Hiro couldn't take it. He was being reduced to nothing. "A-Alright! You're the best big bro in the world and I'll never be as smart as you and I'll make breakfast for you! JUST PUT ME DOWN!" Hiro begged with no ounce of dignity left.

Tadashi laughed so hard, his stomach was starting to hurt. True to his word, he threw Hiro down on his bed. "Finally." Hiro said in pure bliss.

A full minute passed and Hiro didn't move a muscle since he was thrown on his bed.

Tadashi started to get mildly concerned, his older brother instincts taking over at once. "Hey, you okay Hiro?" he asked cautiously. "Yeah, just a bit NAUSEOUS thanks." Hiro said sarcastically. Tadashi scratched his head sheepishly. "Yeah, sorry about that. But hey, someday you'll look back on this and laugh." He said with a smile. Hiro shook his head.

Oh no Tadashi. I plan to disintegrate this memory from my brain forever." He announced, rubbing his head. Tadashi smirked in response, which made Hiro brace himself for what was to come, but his older brother simply went to the top of their bookshelf, confusing the younger boy.

"Tadashi, what are you- OH NO, gimmie that camera!" Hiro screeched, grabbing for it, but with no avail. His older brother had it held way too high for him to reach. Tadashi wouldn't stop laughing so Hiro decided to resort to plan X. he only used this plan to really get what he wanted. It was embarrassing and a last resort, but it ALWAYS worked on Tadashi.

Hiro took a deep breath and gave Tadashi his best puppy dog face, hoping to get his older bro to budge.

Tadashi quit laughing and faced his younger brother, but soon regretted it and looked away faster than he had spun the poor child.

"Oh god no. not the face Hiro. Anything but the face!" Tadashi begged, shielding his eyes.

Hiro added a bit of water to his eyes, just to complete the puppy face, then added a nickname he used to use when he was younger.

"Dashi PLEEEAAAAASEEE give me the camera? Please. Pretty please with a cherry on top? And maybe even make me breakfast? Please Dashi?" Hiro said in the most innocent and childish voice he could muster, making sure to emphasize the nickname. Tadashi crumbled at the voice and began lowering the camera. Then, as if coming out of a hypnotic trance, he yanked it away just as Hiro almost got ahold of it.

"Shoot." Hiro said solemnly. Tadashi smiled at his brother and ruffled his hair.

C'mon baby bro, let's go make some pancakes together." He said, encasing his hand into the younger child's with a happier mood and heading downstairs with an equally happy Hiro.

"Hey Dashi?" Hiro asked. "Hm?" Tadashi asked. "Chocolate chip right?" the younger brother asked sheepishly. Tadashi laughed out loud. "Anything for you little guy." He responded. "And Tadashi?" Hiro asked again. The older Hamda brother looked to Hiro expectantly. "Please delete the video?" Hiro begged. Tadashi put his free hand on his chin, pretending to think it over. "How about I keep the video and buy you a jumbo bag of gummy bears?" he asked. Hiro jumped up at this deal. "DEAL! Totally deal. You can record me anytime." Hiro stated, dragging Tadashi down the stairs and outside toward the candy store. Tadashi shook his head amusingly.

Suddenly, Hiro didn't completely regret opening the bathroom door anymore.


	2. Chapter 2

Brothers

2

Ages

Hiro: 7

Tadashi: 11

Normal POV

The Hamada brothers were lazing around in their shared room, bored as buckets. They heard some clanking and something fall downstairs from the bakery kitchen and exchanged knowing looks. Aunt Cass wasn't the most graceful person in the world. As if on cue, they heard their Aunt's voice yell at them from downstairs.

"Kiddos, I kinda broke a glass brownie pan and need to run to the market to get a new one. Be back in 30. Stay safe and DON'T leave the house for anything unless it's life threatening!" she said, rushing out the door.

As soon as she shut the door, Hiro's stomach grumbled.

Tadashi smirked at Hiro with an idea brewing in his brain. "Hiro, you thinkin what I'm thinkin?" the mischievous pre-teen asked. Hiro shook his head and sighed. "I was Dashi, I was until I realized the consequences." Hiro responded. Tadashi rolled his eyes at his younger brother's worries.

"C'mon Hiro, we'll steal just one donut each and then sneak outta the bakery before Aunt Cass even comes back." Tadashi urged. Hiro pondered over the plan, but ended up shaking his head.

"No way Dashi. Aunt Cass barely has any rules, but one of them happens to be not to eat her merchandise. Plus, I don't wanna get in trouble. She could find out you know." Hiro reasoned. Tadashi blew a huff of frustration.

"Don't call me Dashi. You're old enough to pronounce the entire thing." Tadashi said sourly. Hiro looked down and winced a bit at Tadashi's tone.

His older brother didn't really have a strong relationship with him. People kept telling him that when he got older they'd get closer, but that he had to put forth some effort too. Maybe this was the effort those people were talking about? He had to take a chance. He really wanted Tadashi to like him.

"T-Tadashi?" Hiro asked nervously.

"What?" his older brother asked, still slightly miffed.

"R-race ya downstairs?" Hiro asked with a slight smile.

Tadashi's face considerably lit up. "Yeah! There he is! My little bro! Knew you'd come through." He said, ruffling Hiro's hair. Hiro crinkled his nose in annoyance at the gesture, but was pleased that nice Tadashi was back.

They raced downstairs, Tadashi obviously winning due to his longer legs. They headed behind the counter and marveled over the delicious teeth rotting goodies available at the Lucky Cat café. As soon as Tadashi opened the glass, the amazing fragrances penetrated Hiro's nose and sent him into a temporary mode of bliss. He smelled chocolate, strawberry, frosting, and powdered sugar all in one. Any second thoughts the seven year old boy once had now faded in an instant and he reached to grab something, but was stopped by Tadashi.

"Dashi?" Hiro asked, confused. Tadashi simply smiled. "Let's make this more interesting huh?" his older brother asked. Hiro cocked his head to the side, waiting for an explanation.

"Let's play for it. Pick a game. Whoever wins gets to pick what goodie we snag?" Tadashi suggested, knowing Hiro wouldn't back down from a challenge. As expected, the younger brother eagerly nodded in anticipation. "Okay. Let's shoot darts for it." Hiro said, quickly pulling some darts out of the drawer of the kitchen. He mentally thanked Aunt Cass for hanging up that dart board in the dining area for him.

"Alright, let's go oldest to youngest." Tadashi said, snatching the darts from Hiro's hands. "Heyyy Dashiiiii!" Hiro whined.

"Quit your incessant whining and lemme go. We know I'm gonna win anyway." Tadashi said dismissively. Hiro looked to the floor in sadness. Even when he tried to oblige with Tadashi's demands, his older brother was irritated with him. He tried to ignore the burning sensation in his throat, telling himself that seven years old was too old to cry. Especially not in front of Tadashi who would no doubt tease him for it later. He sat at a table and silently watched his brother shoot the darts one by one until three were smashed onto the board.

"HA! 30 points. Beat that Hiro. Bet you won't." Tadashi said smugly, pulling the three darts from their 10 point marks and handing them to his younger brother.

Hiro was craving a chocolate chip cookie so bad and knew that if Tadashi won, he'd pick donuts. He couldn't let that happen. Hiro focused with all his might and threw the first dart.

"YES! 20 points." He cheered. Tadashi looked slightly worried. Hiro took a deep breath and threw the second one. His eyes widened to the size of saucers and his face broke into a massive grin. "HA Dashi! That's 30 points so far! I can even just get 5 and beat you now!" Hiro said in victory.

Tadashi huffed in annoyance and felt his more advantageous side take over him. He saw Hiro getting ready to throw the third dart and calculated his timing right. Right as Hiro released it, the younger Hamada brother felt a chair hit his leg and his dart went spiraling toward the wall, completely missing the dart board. He glared at Tadashi who whistled innocently, not meeting Hiro's gaze.

"Tadashi! You KNEW that was important to me and that I was clearly going to win. I get to pick the dessert. You CHEATER!" he said angrily.

"Shut up you big baby. Take your loss like a man." Tadashi said nonchalantly. Hiro felt tears of anger and hurt approach his eyes. He couldn't believe how unfair and mean Tadashi was being.

"Tadashi that's NOT fair. If anything and I mean ANYTHING at all, we're tied, but I should get a do-over!" Hiro exclaimed, flailing his arms about, not allowing himself to cry in front of his older brother. Tadshi rolled his eyes once more.

"Fine whatever." Tadashi said, thrusting the dart into his younger brother's hands. Hiro blinked twice as if he didn't believe it. He gave a light smile and took this as a step in the right direction. He aimed the dart and threw it with new found motivation and then closed his eyes.

"NO way." He heard his brother breathe. Hiro opened his eyes to see that he had got a bull's eye. "NO WAY NO WAY NO WAY! I did it! I pick chocolate chip cookies! YES!" Hiro shrieked, not bothering to try and contain his excitement.

The little boy rushed behind the counter and took out two chocolate chip cookies. He reached to hand one to his older brother first, just to be nice.

"Here Dashi, try it!" Hiro said eagerly. Tadashi smacked Hiro's hand away, causing him to drop the cookie. Hiro's face fell instantly.

"Dashi, why'd you do that?" Hiro asked, confused.

"Stupid little kid. I'm still taking a donut. Only you'd be dumb enough to agree to those rules. I mean, who even cares if we take different desserts? And another thing. QUIT calling me Dashi. You're not 5 years old. It's not cute anymore. Actually, it never was." Tadashi said.

Hiro felt tears welling up again and tried his absolute hardest not to let them fall. Maybe people were wrong. Maybe he and Tadashi would NEVER get along.

Tadashi grabbed a sprinkled donut and hurriedly ate it. Hiro hung his head down. "I would've done it if you won." Hiro whispered quietly.

Tadashi looked guilty for a split second, but his sour mood of losing to Hiro won out in his emotional conflict. "Yeah, well that's the difference between you and I." he said nonchalantly. Hiro looked up and gave his brother the meanest glare he could manage. "Yeah, I guess it is." Hiro said as deeply as he could, turning away from Tadashi.

The younger of the two suddenly wasn't that hungry anymore. He turned to place the cookie back in the glass encasing. Before he could though, the bakery door opened to reveal their Aunt Cass with a paper bag in her hand. Hiro's eyes widened, realizing he still had the cookie in his hand. His aunt looked at them both and then she did a double take.

"Hiro HAMDA!" she yelled. Hiro gulped and lamely tried to hide the cookie behind him. "What is the matter with you? Not only did you take a cookie, but you wasted one by dropping it on the floor? I've told you once I've told you boys a thousand times not to eat my inventory and what did you do? Words can't describe my disappointment Hiro. Tadashi never did anything like this. I didn't expect this from you. GO to you room. You're grounded mister!" Aunt Cass yelled.

Hiro looked to Tadashi for help or something, ANYTHING really, but found his brother had a stoic expression. At this point, Hiro couldn't help it nor did he care any longer.

He looked at the cookie in his hand and back at Tadashi. He thought, 'screw it, I'm in trouble already so it shouldn't matter'. He aimed and flung the cookie right at Tadashi's face and made perfect contact. "Bull's eye." He whispered loud enough for Tadashi to hear.

Aunt Cass gasped. "Hiro, ROOM. NOW!" she commanded. Hiro walked grudgingly to the steps, still high on anger and frustration and betrayal.

"YOU KNOW WHAT TADASHI HAMADA?! I HATE YOU. I. HATE. YOU!" Hiro screeched, stressing each syllable as if they were separate words. He then rushed upstairs, tears clearly present in his eyes and spread across his entire face. He sobbed and didn't care if Tadashi teased him for it because he apparently hated him.

Little did Hiro know that his words had indeed affected Tadashi. 'Wow, I'm a jerk of a brother.' Tadashi thought to himself. He turned to Aunt Cass. "Hey Aunt Cass, there's something you should know….." Tadashi said.

Hiro had been glancing at the clock every few minutes to see how long he had been confided in his room before going back to his revenge plot on Tadashi. He would SUFFER for being unfair and rude, though tears still streamed down his face.

People knew nothing. He and Tadashi would NEVER be friends. He was already miserable that they were even brothers.

Hiro suddenly heard the door creaking open and rushed to his bed, trying to cease his crying. He faced the other side of the bed, readying himself for more yelling from Aunt Cass or even threats from Tadashi for throwing that cookie at him. What he got instead surprised him greatly.

He felt arms encircle him so tight, it almost cut off his breathing. "Wh-who?" Hiro tried to speak.  
>"Oh Hiro. I'm so sorry. Tadashi told me everything. I'm so sorry." Aunt Cass said apologetically. Hiro was mildly confused and extremely shocked, but he patted Aunt Cass on the back. "I-it's okay Aunt Cass. Really." Hiro assured. Though in reality he was a bit pissed for being locked in his room for thirty minutes. "Come downstairs for dinner in 10. And if it wasn't already obvious, you're not grounded anymore." She said, heading downstairs to set the table.<p>

Hiro blinked. Unsure if that was real or not. Did Tadashi really tell the truth for him? He couldn't believe it and he chose not to. He heard the door creak open again and found himself face to face with Tadashi. Hiro remained wordless. Tadashi cleared his throat.

The older of the brothers plopped himself down on Hiro's bed, getting close to him. Hiro lowered his eyebrows and had a glare present on his face, almost daring Tadashi to do something else.

"Hey baby bro." Tadashi started softly. Hiro maintained his heavy glare.

Tadashi sighed. "I was a jerk. And loser. And meanie. And sore sport. And a hypocrite. And I'm sorry Hiro. I never realized how much what idiotic things I did affected you and I'm sorry. I never wanted you to hate me. It's just, I'm jealous Hiro. Aunt Cass loves you because you're smarter and she thinks you work hard when that's not true. YOU don't even have to try. Even with mom and dad. You three. FRICKIN 3 years old and you stole all the attention away. You started talking at 1 ½. That's crazy. Whereas me? I have to put effort and try my hardest but even then you're more exciting and what you do or make is a million times better than mine and I'm sorry that all my anger toward you came out like that. I didn't mean it and I'm really sorry. If I could do anything, I'd go back in time and change how tonight went down. We could've actually had fun were it not for my stupid jealousy taking over like that. I hope you'll forgive me because Hiro, no matter what you do, I'll never hate you. And I REALLY hope you didn't mean it when you said you hated me, because it stung. Did I deserve it? Hell yes, but it still hurt. And I hope it was just your anger talking, because Hiro, I don't think I could live knowing that you hate me." Tadashi said slowly, with some tears of his own threatening to pour out.

Hiro blinked. He could not believe that Tadashi was jealous of him. Tadashi was a great guy. Tall, handsome, smart, and loving (when he wanted to be). Hiro was overwhelmed with that speech. "Tadashi, I… I don't know what exactly to say. You're definitely forgiven. I don't hate you. It WAS just the anger talking. I didn't mean it at all. I'm also sorry that I threw a cookie at you." Hiro said softly. Tadashi broke into a grin and tackled Hiro into a bone crushing hug. Though it still wasn't as bad as Aunt Cass's hug to Hiro.

"Great, let's go down for dinner now. Then how's about I buy you a fresh chocolate chip cookie outta the oven and try to be a better big brother?" Tadashi asked.

Hiro nodded eagerly. "Sounds awesome. And Tadashi? Thanks. Not many people have the guts to admit they're jealous or even apologize like that, so thanks. And by the way, with those looks, you ain't got nothing to be jealous about." Hiro said teasingly. Tadashi shook his head and went toward his bed. Then, in a flash, Hiro came back to reality and pushed his brother away from his bed.

"What the heck Hiro?" Tadashi asked, getting up. He looked up only to see that Hiro was drenched in ice cold water and shivering violently. "What in the world?" Tadashi questioned.

Hiro chuckled sheepishly. "Uh, heh heh, that was for uh, ya know…I didn't think you'd apologize. So I had a…an um.. a revenge plan." Hiro admitted ashamed. Tadashi gaped before sitting. Hiro was gonna drench him in ICE WATER? He then thought it over.

He sighed heavily. "Hiro, it's okay. I probably deserved it anyway. Hurry it up and change so we can go eat and get that cookie." He said, pushing his shivering bro toward the bathroom.

"Thanks Tadashi." Hiro said, teeth chattering.

"Hey Hiro?" Tadashi called.

"Yeah?"

"C-Call me Dashi. If you want. It's starting to sound cute again. Actually, it never stopped." Tadashi said smiling at the ground.


	3. Chapter 3

Brothers

3

Ages

Hiro: 4 1/2

Tadashi: 9

Tadashi POV

I was just about to go to sleep when I heard teeny tiny tip toes coming toward my bed. I mentally groaned. That could only mean one thing. Hiro was gonna beg me to sleep with him and then ask for a glass of milk, and then a cookie, and then a bedtime story. It would be forever till Hiro would let me get sleep. He had done it four times before. Having a little brother stunk.

I remembered when Hiro first came home. At first, I was beyond excited to be a big brother, but within hours of Hiro arriving home, I got sick of him. Every stupid little thing Hiro did would impress our parents to extents that I was sure I never did. The thing that bugged me the most was that Hiro made it nearly impossible to hate him. With his big doe brown eyes, messy adorable hair, squeezable cheeks, charming teeth gap, beyond cute puppy dog face, and undeniable trust toward me, Hiro was a perfect little brother. I admired that about Hiro, but the four and a half year old boy could certainly be a handful.

I pushed the covers off of me when I heard the ever so quiet pitter pattering footsteps cease. I locked eyes with my brother, but immediately wished I hadn't. He looked so cute, I felt my manliness escape me in an instant.

He sniffled and tears were evident on his face. "D-Dashi?" he squeaked adorably. I sighed and patted toward a spot I cleared up for him next to me on my bed. He smiled, though tears still embellished his face. He climbed up with a bit of difficulty and I actually had to help pull him up. He wiggled a bit until he found a comfortable position, which resulted with his face perched on my stomach. He sighed in content, making me feel a bit warm inside.

"Dashi?" he whispered. "Hm?" I asked. "Dashi, I know mommy and daddy are all gone, but what if….what if w-what i-i-if you leave me t-too? What would I do?" he struggled to ask, fear lacing his tone so bad, it made me want to do everything in my power to make it go away.

"Don't sweat it baby bro, I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. I promise. I care about ya too much ya little bone head." I say, fluffing his hair affectionately. I pulled him closer to me and embraced him reassuringly. We were like that for a while until I felt my night shirt getting wet. Was Hiro still crying? "Hey, Hiro?" I asked, concerned.

"B-but D-Dashi! The man said he would hurt you if I didn't do what he wanted." Hiro whisper cried, clenching onto me for dear life, tears escaping at a break neck pace. I widened my eyes in shock. "Hiro, what man? What do you mean?" I urge. My baby bro wiped his eyes. They were blotchy and red.

"The man in my nightmare. He took me away from you and said if I didn't do exactly as he said, you'd end up leaving me forever just like mommy and daddy. He said that it was no accident that Mommy and Daddy died." Hiro breathed, shivering in fright. I gasped. Hiro was there when mom and dad died, I was at school. He knows what happened, but he only told me. They were in a supermarket when a robber came out of nowhere and shot them both. He spared Hiro, though no one knows why. I hope that wasn't the same man Hiro saw in his nightmare.

"Hiro, I promise I won't leave you. Not now, not ever. I care about you way too much to leave you alone. You're my baby bro. don't think for even a second that I'd leave you because I won't. The man in your nightmare isn't real. He's just a bad dream, that's all. I promise I'll always do whatever I can to protect you, okay?" I assure him, rubbing circled into his hands, something that always managed to calm him down.

"Pinky promise?" he squeaked, holding out an extremely tiny pinky to me. I smile and extend mine as well. "Pinky swear or may lightning strike me dead." I say, linking our pinkies.

"NO DASHI!" he whisper screamed and startled me. "Wh-what was that for Hiro?" my baby brother wiped his eyes once more and looked at me with such an innocent and scared look, I wanted to hold onto him forever and never let him go. "Dashi, never wish you were dead. Especially by lightning. You just promised you wouldn't. No matter what." Hiro scolded seriously. I chuckled at his childish antics, that, and he puffed his cheeks out and it looked hilarious.

He started bawling again. "Dashi stop laughing!" he whisper cried. I immediately cease my laughter. "Shhh, Hiro, I didn't mean it. You just looked so funny. It was only an expression. I meant what I said about keeping my promise. Don't worry. Okay?" I tried to calm him down. He sniffed and wiped his face. "Okay Dashi. I believe you. Never leave me." he begged, burying his small face into me, snuggling as close to me as possible. I smiled at his response.

I pull the covers over us and try to get to sleep. Right as I start to doze off, I feel the full weight of Hiro on top of me. He poked my nose not so gently and I was alert.

"What happened?" I ask, opening my eyes to see Hiro about 3 centimeters away from my face, his whole body on mine. He smiled sheepishly. "Dashi? Can we get a glass of milk?" he asked twiddling his thumbs together nervously awaiting my response. I sigh in frustration. He looks at me dead in the eye. "Please Dashi? Pretty please?" he asked with a puppy dog face, unknowingly getting me to crack against my will. "Oh, fine. C'mon then." I say pushing off the covers, unable to resist the face. Hiro's face lights up like a Christmas tree. "Yes!" he whisper shouts, grabbing my hand and dragging me downstairs with him.

The eager little maniac races to the cabinet that held the cups and waits expectantly. I smile, deciding to mess with him a bit. I walk over to the cabinet and pull out a cup. Hiro meanwhile grabs the milk carton from the fridge, struggling to carry it. He places it on the ground next to me and smiles adorably, almost making me reconsider my little prank. ALMOST.

I pour the milk into the cup and put it back in the fridge. Hiro grabs for the cup, but I hold it out of his reach. I'm so much taller than him and I love using it to my advantage. Hiro frowns at this and begins to pout like a four year old, oh wait, he IS a four year old. It's pretty cute and funny to watch. He jumps up and down like crazy, trying his absolute hardest to get the cup with no avail, making me chuckle. He tries a few more times before sitting down on the floor with his face in his hands.

I lean down. "Hiro? You okay buddy?" I ask, concerned. I hoped he wasn't truly upset with me. I place the cup down and position my hands on his shoulders. "Hey, Hiro c'mon, I was just playin. You know that right?" I ask cautiously. Hiro suddenly looks up, but instead of tears, I see a devilish smirk on his little face. He quickly grabs for the cup and downs the milk in a big gulp.

"I know." He says smugly, placing the cup down with a satisfied look. He then whisper laughs like a maniac. "Unbelievable." I say, not able to see how he fooled me like that. His adorableness will literally be the end of me.

"Guess who's not getting a cookie now." I say, crossing my arms. Hiro's eyes widen with shock. "No Dashi! Please! I'm sorry. I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry, it hurts. Please don't take away the cookie!" he begged, grabbing onto my feet, all signs of dignity lost. I roll my eyes at his childish antics. "Don't sweat it bone head, here." I say, handing him the cookie I hid behind my back with a big dopey smile. He noticeably brightens up and gobbles down the cookie like an animal.

He finally finishes and drags me back upstairs. "Alright, let's go to sleep now." Hiro says eagerly, waiting for me to pick him up. I shake my head and smile. "C'mon little guy." I say hoisting him up onto my bed. Then, before I can get on, he spreads himself out in the middle, deliberately blocking off any space for me. I smirk at his try. I pick him up and he squeals with surprise. "Dashi! Put me down!" he says giggling. I place him on the floor and jump into my soft, fluffy bed.

He tries to get up himself, but his shrimpy self can't. I chuckle at his attempts. He looks at me with innocent eyes. "Dashi. Uppp! He begs. I shrug my shoulders. "Sorry Hiro, no room." I say jokingly. He gives me the face again. I hate it when he does that. At least he doesn't know how it affects me. He just does it on accident sometimes. His pupils get wider and he looks tooooooooooo adorable. "PLeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaase Dashi?" he whines/begs. I couldn't help it. I pulled him up and snuggled into him and vice versa.

"Hey Dashi?" he asks sleepily. "Hm?" I ask with my eyes closed. "Will you tell me a sto-" he cuts himself off with a yawn and goes to sleep midsentence. I shake my head. Sometimes, Hiro's too cute for his own good. It'll probably get to his head one day.

But maybe just for now, he's not so bad….


	4. Chapter 4

Brothers

4

Ages

Hiro: 10

Tadashi: 14

Normal POV

Hiro Hamada's gift of intelligence was something that did his best not to take for granted or abuse. Until today that is. He didn't know what compelled him to do it, but here he was in a dark alley way, counting his money. A total of 400$ was in the palm of his hands. It was more money than most ten year olds could ever dream of having. And it was all his. He earned it all by himself, no help from Tadashi whatsoever. It was just one of the things he loved most about bot-fighting. It was the one thing he never ever needed help from Tadashi for.

Tadashi had warned him about the dangers of bot-fighting and how someone of his intellect shouldn't get caught up in it, but of course, Hiro got sucked in. Hiro didn't understand what bad could come out of something so great and money making. That was before he saw what happened next…. But let's start from this morning shall we?

Flash back!

"_Alright Aunt Cass, we'll be safe, promise. We're only going to the mall after all." Tadashi assured, grabbing Hiro's hand and ushering him out the door with him to avoid any more safety talks with their aunt. "Alright boys, I trust you, just don't let Hiro out of your sight no matter WHAT." Aunt Cass said, waving goodbye. _

_When they were finally out the door, Tadashi took off his hat and sighed in relief. "Finally." He said stubbornly, checking himself out. Hiro cocked his head to the side in confusion. "I don't get it. We're only going to the mall. Why're you so excited and why are you trying to look really nice and why do you smell weird?" the younger boy asked. Tadashi waved it off. "You wouldn't understand." He said dismissively. _

"_Try me." Hiro pressed. Tadashi rolled his eyes. "Fine. I'm excited because a few of my friends are gonna be there alright? And it's called cologne bone head." He said, ruffling Hiro's hair. Hiro backed up and gave Tadashi a glare. "Don't ruffle my hair Daaashi. And you didn't tell me why you're trying to look all nice and stuff yet." Hiro huffed. _

"_That's for me to know and you to NOT find out. And you know you love it little bro." Tadashi said with a chuckle, ruffling Hiro's hair once more. _

_Hiro fixed his hair back, agitated. "Crazy older brother." He mumbled, walking ahead of Tadashi. "Hey get back here bone head. Aunt Cass didn't just give me a 30 minute lecture on keeping you in my line of sight for nothing." The older of the two spoke, catching up to Hiro. _

"_So we can check out the place with the stuff right?" Hiro asked. Tadashi laughed. "Hiro, if I wasn't your brother I'd be so lost right now. Real descriptive. Yeah we can go to Bots and Stuff to get parts for robots." He said. Hiro smiled. "Well, that's why you're my brother bro. no one understands me like you do. Plus, you promised me you weren't going anywhere anytime soon. I remember that." Hiro said as they walked._

_Tadashi rose an eyebrow at this statement. "You Know, it kinda sounds like you'd MISS me, aye baby bro?" Tadashi asked with a smirk. _

"_Whatever. You know you'd miss me way more." Hiro said with an eye roll._

"_You wouldn't last a DAY without me to guide you little bro."_

"_Oh yeah daddy long legs? You wouldn't last an HOUR without me."_

"_Daddy long legs? Real creative Hiro. Really, how many brain cells of that genius mind did it take you to come up with that one?"_

"_Less than it took you to retaliate to said 'lame' insult."_

"_Ha ha. But seriously. You need me way more than I need you."_

"_Real funny Tadashi. You wouldn't be able to handle life without me to brighten up your day. You KNOW I make things more interesting."_

"_Hiro, don't make me laugh. Who was there when you had nightmares? When you wanted to hear a story? When you needed reassurance that I'd stay even though mom and dad left? Who was there you comfort you? To dry those tears?" Tadashi reminded him with a satisfied smirk. _

_Hiro frowned. "That's not fair. If I was older, it'd be the other way around. Look at the stuff I do for you. I've taken the blame for you several times before." Hiro countered. _

_Tadashi thought it over. Hiro smiled. Even though from a distance people might think they were actually fighting, it was simply sibling bantering and Hiro secretly enjoyed it. _

"_Well that's one point you made. I still have like 3 points hovering over you though." Tadashi said. Hiro was about to counter once more, but was interrupted in his thoughts when Tadashi unexpectedly grabbed his hand and rushed inside the mall they had finally reached. _

_Upset that he hadn't had a chance to retaliate, Hiro crossed his arms when Tadashi finally stopped running. Unaware of his brother's distasteful state, Tadashi broke into a grin when he met his friends. This was the first time Hiro was gonna see them and Tadashi was a bit excited to see what he'd think. _

_Hiro finally quit glaring at Tadashi long enough to see that they were no longer alone. Hiro wasn't good with meeting other people, so he hid behind Tadashi. _

"_C'mon baby bro, they won't bite. Well…Gogo might." Tadashi said, muttering the last part. Hiro didn't budge. Tadashi sighed and faced his friends who were all anxiously waiting to meet Hiro. "Sorry guys. He's a bit shy." Tadashi said apologetically. _

_Suddenly, the tallest of them all raced behind Tadashi and put her face real up close to Hiro's. "HEY THERE HIRO! It's so nice to finally meet you! Tadashi talks non-stop about you. Don't worry though, all good things. Bet the poor guy practically couldn't LIVE without you! Ohhhh you're even cuter than he described. DO that face! DO the FACE!" she said all bubbly and energetic. Hiro blinked, alarmed and confused and even a bit surprised. He didn't think Tadashi would talk much about him to other people, let alone his best friends. _

"_Wow there Honey, take it easy on the poor guy." Tadashi said with a chuckle. Hiro blinked again. Honey? Did Tadashi have a girlfriend? Why wouldn't he have at least told him? _

"_What face?" Hiro asked, crinkling his nose in confusion. "And I KNEW you couldn't live without me." Hiro whispered to Tadashi in secret. Tadashi rolled his eyes. _

"_OH, the face that Tadashi said make him do wha-" _

"_OKAY HONEY LEMON that's enough of that." Tadashi said, cutting the super tall girl off. _

_Honey Lemon? Hiro thought. And what was she gonna say anyway? The face that makes him do what? So many questions. _

"_Anyways Hiro, these are my friends. That's gogo." He said pointing at a black haired girl with purple highlights. "That's Wasabi." He said pointing to a guy in dreadlocks. "And that's Honey Lemon." He said pointing to the tall energetic girl. Though Hiro swore he could hear Tadashi's voice change a bit when he introduced Honey Lemon. _

"_No offense, but what kinda named are these?" Hiro asked. Tadashi elbowed him in the shoulder. "Ow!" Hiro cried, rubbing his arm. _

"_No harm done Tadashi! He's only curious after all!" Honey Lemon said, waving it off. Gogo simply popped a bubble. Wasabi waved in a friendly manner. _

_Honey Lemon turned to explain to Hiro. "Oh you see, Fred picks our nicknames." She said brightly. Hiro cocked his head to the side. "Fred?" he asked. Honey Lemon nodded eagerly._

_Suddenly Hiro felt a tap behind him. He turned around to come face to face with a blonde guy in a blue beanie and goofy grin. He didn't look anything like the others. He seemed more….aloof to Hiro. _

"_I'm Fred." He said, holding his hand out for a fist bump. Hiro returned it half-heartedly. _

_Hiro look to Tadashi because he was still pretty nervous, but his older brother was too busy absorbed in a conversation with Honey Lemon, though it looked one-sided as Honey's hands were doing all sorts of gestures and her face constantly changed expressions. Tadashi seemed mesmerized by it all though. _

_He poked his older bro in the side to get his attention. No response, he was too into the conversation with Honey. _

_He saw Tadashi's other friends all share knowing looks. He gave a puzzled look to them. Fred leaned in and whispered to Hiro "Bro, your brother has got the major hots for Honey here." He said. Hiro looked shocked, not really believing what he just heard. _

_Gogo went to the ten year old to better explain it. "Listen Hiro, Tadashi has a crush on Honey Lemon. It's so obvious and everyone sees it, though we're not sure if Honey feels the same way since she's so unpredictable. So we should give them some 'alone' time." Gogo said with quotation marks. Hiro reluctantly accepted this bit of news and walked away with the others. In the span of twenty seconds, Wasabi and Fred disappeared from their vision. _

"_Where'd they go?" Hiro asked. Gogo popped her gum. "Dunno. But probably somewhere to waste their time for sure." Gogo said. She didn't have anything against Tadashi's younger brother, but she despised little kids with a passion. She tried to hide it in fear of hurting the younger boy's feelings, so she attempted to find something they have in common. _

"_Well Hiro, what kind of things do you like to do?" Gogo asked. Hiro brought a hand to his chin to think. "Hmm, I like spending time with Tadashi. Oh and robotics! I love robotics." Hiro said brightly. Gogo rolled her eyes. This was Tadashi's brother all right. Eyes lighting up at the word robotics. Must be a Hamada thing. _

"_Well, what else?" Gogo pressed on. "I like…video games." Hiro said after thinking. Gogo nodded. "There we go, let's hit the video game store." She said, ushering Hiro to follow her. Hiro followed close behind her. _

_Hiro gulped and debated whether he should speak or not. After a second thought, he decided to set things straight. "Look Gogo is it? I know you don't like me and that's okay. Maybe we could just split up? Don't worry, I remember where Tadashi is, so it's perfectly safe." Hiro suggested. _

_Gogo gulped. 'So much for acting nice.' She thought. The kid really WAS as smart as Tadashi had mentioned. He really wasn't exaggerating. Gogo thought over Hiro's offer. _

"_I don't know Hiro. Tadashi really cares about you. If he finds out I let you roam around on your own, he might show his dark side." Gogo said with a shudder. _

_This was news to the younger Hamada. Hiro had never in his entire life seen Tadashi's dark side. In fact, he'd never seen Tadashi truly angry in his entire 10 years of living. _

"_Well I won't tell if you don't." Hiro said with a shrug. Gogo smiled. The kid wasn't so bad after all. _

"_Alright Hiro, but meet me by this water fountain in exactly 30 minutes got it?" she said firmly. Hiro eagerly nodded and started to run, but was yanked back by Gogo. "Remember kid. THIRTY minutes. Don't be even a second late. If something happens to you, Tadashi will KILL me." Gogo said in dead seriousness. Hiro gulped and nodded. With that, Gogo nodded and headed to the video game store. _

_After she was gone from his line of sight, Hiro rushed to the robotics store. The bell chimed indicating that someone entered and the shopkeeper looked up from his book. _

"_Ah, Hiro Hamada. Back again I see. Where's that older brother of yours?" the shopkeeper asked. Hiro waved a hello. "Hey Mr. Ganado. He's over in the food court with a friend." Hiro said, glancing over at the spare parts and bolts. _

_Mr. Ganado loved it when the Hamada brothers came to his store. He loved seeing siblings get along and the Hamada brothers were really close. The fact that they shared a common interest in robotics added to that. _

_A few minutes later, Hiro went to the counter with a handful of parts. _

"_Wow Hiro. Must be some project." Mr. Ganado said, marveling over all the parts Hiro had brought to the register. Hiro nodded eagerly. The shopkeeper rung him up. "20 dollars." He said with a smile. Hiro pulled out the money Tadashi gave him to spend. It was all 20 dollars he had, but it was all he was going to buy anyway so he handed it to Mr. Ganado and headed outside with his parts._

_Sitting down in a corner, Hiro pulled out his bot from his hoodie pocket and started working on it with the brand new parts he just bought. After a few more minutes, he had the ultimate bot ready to fight. He even painted a little smiley face on it for good measure. Hiro REALLY wanted to try this bot out as soon as possible so he rushed to where Tadashi was. _

_When he say his older bro, his mood dampened. He forgot that Tadashi was busy with Honey Lemon. Both teens were seated at a table, eating together and talking and laughing. Hiro really wanted to test out his bot so he went over to where they were and sat at the last chair at the table. Tadashi looked a bit irritated, but Honey was overjoyed. _

"_Hey there Hiro!" she greeted. Hiro smiled and waved in response. "Hey Tadashi, I gotta try this new bot out NOW!" he explained to his older brother. Tadashi shook his head seriously. "Not now Hiro, wait till we get home." His older brother replied. _

_Hiro's heart sunk. Was Tadashi really blowing him off for some girl? His OWN BROTHER? "Daaashi pleeeaaaase?" Hiro begged. _

"_AWWWW that's adorable!" Honey Lemon gushed in pure joy. Hiro blushed like a maniac and Tadashi looked agitated. Tadashi then handed Honey a 5 dollar bill. "Hey Honey, buy some dessert will ya?" He offered. Honey Lemon brightened up even more and rushed to the register._

_Hiro gulped. Bracing himself for Tadashi's wrath he closed his eyes. Tadashi sighed. "Open your eyes baby bro." Tadashi said softly. Hiro reluctantly opened them. "Look Hiro, I know you really wanna do this, but please wait okay? I know it's hard for you to understand but-" "But you like Honey Lemon." Hiro finished. Tadashi blinked in surprise. _

"_Y-yeah. Okay maybe you DO understand." Tadashi said, scratching his head. Hiro's gaze sunk to the floor. His gaze turned harsh and a bit angry. "Hiro?" Tadashi asked. _

"_I can't believe you're choosing her over me. You said you'd always be there for me. Was that all just a lie to get rid of me? Was it fun? Taking advantage of your little brother?" Hiro asked harshly. _

"_Hiro c'mon that's ridiculous. I'm not choosing Honey over you." Tadashi reasoned. "Really? Because it sure feels like it." Hiro said, tears threatening to fall, but Hiro wouldn't allow them to. Tadashi sighed. "Hiro…" he began. "Save it. I'll just hang out with your other friends. They probably won't ditch me for some girl." Hiro said, saying the word 'girl' as if it were toxic. _

_Hiro left the food court and headed outside of the mall. His frustration was taking over him and he didn't pay attention to where he was going. Next thing he knew, he was in an alley. He heard some cheering going on and headed deeper to find out what the source of the noise was. _

_He found himself face to face with two bots. They seemed to be fighting each other. Bot fighting! Hiro thought. _

_Hiro POV (Still flashback)_

_Wait a minute, this must be that thing Tadashi warned me about a while ago. Bot fighting or something like that. It looks even cooler than Tadashi explained, given that Tadashi DID make it seem horrible. How could this be horrible or even illegal? Taking out my bot, I stared at it and then back to the circle of action. _

_Yeah I'm totally doing this. I stepped in as one of the current bots was sent out of the ring. _

"_Hi, I'd like to try please." I said nicely. The guy who won laughed. "HA. You? You're just a kid!" he exclaimed, pointing at me. "I have a bot though!" I cry, holding out mega bot. he shook his head at me. _

"_Go home kid." He said rudely. "I demand to fight. And when I win, I'll be sure to remind you that I'm just a KID." I fire back. The man raised his eyebrows. "Damn, feisty I see." I gulp. I'm usually only this snarky around Tadashi. This is already affecting my personality. _

"_Alright kid, but put in your wager." He said, throwing in a twenty. I gulped. I spent the twenty bucks that Tadashi gave me on parts. What was I supposed to do now?!  
>"What's wrong little boy? No money?" the man asked me tauntingly. I glared at him. Thinking fast, I remembered that Aunt Cass gave me a ten dollar bill in case of emergencies! I hid it in my shoe though. I pulled the ten out and dropped it in the pan. The man looked somewhat shocked. <em>

_I took out the controller and fired up mega bot. he fired his huge robot as well. _

_It took a while for me to get the hang of it, but once I did, it was a piece of cake. Not only did I beat that idiot, I beat 5 guys after him as well. I was making money in no time at all. After that, I lost count of how many people I fought, but I never lost ONCE. Not bad for my first try. _

Present time

Hiro POV

I didn't understand what bad could come out of something so great and money making. Tadashi was such a worry wart. I might actually have Tadashi to thank for this. He's the reason I came here in the first place. As far as I could see, bot fighting was great. That's when it all went wrong though. I felt someone snaking up behind me and grab me by the collar. I gulped and shut my eyes closed.

Tadashi POV

OH god why didn't I go after him after that argument. I should've known better than to leave him that steamed. "HIRO! Where are you? This really isn't funny!" I yell through the streets of San Fransokyo. Since he got mad at me for the whole bot thing, none of my friends had seen him. Honey had to go home and Fred and Wasabi hadn't been heard from since that morning. It was just me and Gogo left to look for him.

"Look Tadashi, I can't even begin to say how sorry I am. I know this is all my fault." Gogo said solemnly. I crinkled my eyebrows in confusion. "Your fault? I'm the one who got into an argument with him. Gogo, don't beat yourself up, this is all MY fault. I just wanna find Hiro." I say desperately. Gogo stays silent but keeps helping me look.

"HIRO! Where are you bone head?!" I cry out. I fall to the floor in sadness.

Suddenly, Gogo slapped me. I rubbed my cheek, which was no doubt red by now. "YOUCH! What was that for?" I demand. "Get it together Tadashi. You'll never find Hiro sulking on the floor like that." She reasoned. I nodded. "Okay, split up. I'll go right, you go left." I say and we raced in opposite directions.

I'm about to give up and call the cops when I hear it. My baby brother!

"Please let me go!" I heard him cry. My ears perked up and I rushed to the source of the voice. I couldn't see him because it was kinda dark, but I could definitely hear my baby bro. that was definitely Hiro.

"Please! Lemme go! I didn't do anything to you!" Hiro cried. I felt my heart stop. Someone had him! Someone had my little brother! I'll kill them!

"Not until you hand over that robot and make me about 100 more little boy." A strange voice snarled.

I kept walking, hoping, praying to be able to see them somewhere.

"I'm just a kid! Please?!" Hiro begged, his voice laced with sheer fear. "Shut your whining and do as I say unless you wanna be punished!" the voice said deeply. Hiro whimpered and started crying.

"DAAASHI! DASHI HELP ME! PLEASE DASHI HELP ME!" he cried in agony. I heard a snap and that must've been that guy! He did something to HIRO!

I ran faster than ever and FINALLY found them.

"HIRO!" I scream. My brother was knocked out, eyes shut. The man saw me and smirked. "Great, there's two of them." He said maliciously. I glared at this harsher than I ever glared at anyone in my entire life. Little did this guy know that I was a black belt. Mentally thanking Aunt Cass for making me take those karate classes, I kicked the guy where it counts and rushed to my baby brother.

"Hiro! Hiro! Please wake up baby bro! Hiro c'mon! Don't do this to me!" I shout, shaking him left and right. He slowly comes to and opens his eyes, dried tears surrounding his face. "D-Dashi?" he asks. "Shh, you're okay." I assure him, rocking him between me.

I look up to see the creeper recovering. I get up and push Hiro away from me. I look at this creeper and get ready to fight. Ready to kill this guy if I have to.

He tries to throw a punch at me, but I block it with ease. I manage to get a few punched on him, but he manages a good kick in my side.

I heard hear whimper behind us and I felt my heart go out to him. None of this should've happened to him. He's only ten for crying out loud. I'm about to finish this guy off, when he finally realizes he's gonna lose. He hold his hands up in surrender. "Okay kid, you win." He says, backing away.

I sigh in relief. I turn to face Hiro when I see he isn't where I left him. "HIRO?!" I scream. "DASHI!" he screams. I turn around and see the ruthless cretin holding my brother hostage.

"Let him go!" I growl, coming towards them.

"Take one step closer and I cut his neck in half." He threatens, holding a knife to my baby brother. I feel my heart stop. "O-okay, just PLEASE let him go. I'll do whatever you want." I say, reduced to nothing.

"Take his place." The man demands. Tadashi nods. "NO DASHI! DON'T DO IT!" Hiro screeches. "SHUT UP YOU!" the man yells, pressing the knife into Hiro's neck. "STOP IT!" I beg, down on my knees. The man smirks evilly and lightly slices Hiro's neck right in front of me. "HIRO!" I cry in agony, ready to rush to his side, but before I can, the man slices deeper. "STOP COMING CLOSER OR ELSE HE WON'T HAVE A NECK LEFT!" He threatens. I stop dead in my tracks.

Hiro's whimpering and shivering, and crying in pain. He's so innocent and young and it's not fair. I can't help but cry as well. I already lost my parents, I just CAN'T lose Hiro too. "Hiro, please let me take your place. I can't sit here and watch you get hurt any longer. Go home!" I tell him. "And you think I can watch you leave me? Remember your promise Tadashi!" he reasons. I shake my head. "I can't Hiro. I can't just watch you get hurt." I beg. The man seems to be getting impatient. He pushed Hiro to the ground and grabs me.

"DASI!" he yells, running towards us. "Hiro no! Go home!" I beg him. Before he responds, I feel cool metal press against my neck. I can't help but feel rushes of fear go through me. "Move again squirt. I dare ya." The man says to Hiro. The table certainly have turned and for the worse.

Hiro gulps and backs up. I don't think the kid can handle my neck being sliced right after his own. Then, it happens. The miracle. Hiro gets his bot and orders it to attack. It starts beating the guy mercilessly and he lets me go in the process. I take this opportunity to grab Hiro and get away.

When we reach home, we rush to our rooms, thankful that we avoided Aunt Cass.

I lay Hiro down on my bed and tend to his neck wound. "You're gonna be just fine baby bro." I assure him. Hiro sniffs and nods lightly. "D-Dashi I'm so sorry." He says sadly. I shake my head. "Don't apologize Hiro, this is my fault." I say.

"NO dashi. It's all my fault. I over reacted and did exactly what you warned me not to do. I went bot fighting. I was making so much money, then that guy came and...h-he" Hiro trailed off, unable to finish. I widen my eyes. He went bot fighting?! I specifically told him NOT TO. I let it go though.

"No Hiro. I'm sorry if you thought I was choosing Honey over you. I could never choose anyone over you. Besides, Honey Lemon just wants to be friends for now anyway. God Hiro, I thought I was gonna lose you forever. You gave me a heart attack you did knuckle head!" I exclaim, hugging him close. Hiro hugged back for once.

We got dressed and headed to bed. Not 5 minutes passed when I heard Hiro's little footsteps coming toward my bed. I pulled my cover back and allowed him to climb in. no words were spoken. He just snuggled into me and I did to him. I held him as close as possible, not willing to let go. Not now, not ever. He's my baby bro. I'll never choose anyone else over him.

We started dozing off, but then I heard Hiro's soft voice say something I'll never forget. "Nii Chan, I definitely need you way more than you need Me." he whispered affectionately.

I love my baby bro so much. I don't think he understands how much we both need each other.


	5. Chapter 5

Brothers

5

Ages

Hiro: 14

Tadashi: 18

Hiro's POV

"Just let it go Tadashi!" I say, raising my voice. That didn't faze him though, he was starting to get used to it. I could tell. We had been fighting quite frequently at night lately.

"I will not let it go Hiro! You're irresponsibility is going to get you into major trouble someday!" He said, raising his voice as well. I rolled my eyes.

"Oh what do you care anyway?" I say, irked. Tadashi took a step back, hurt replacing anger, though I refused to crack.

"Hiro, how could you even ask that? Of course I care about you. That's why I don't want you bot fighting bone head!" he exclaimed.

"You're not my dad, so quit acting like it." I say bluntly. I can see that that really hurt him and I almost feel bad. ALMOST. I refuse to crack in front of him now though.

Tadashi sighs. "Hiro, c'mon. Don't pull the 'dad' card. Not now." Tadashi reasons patiently. "I will too pull it. You think that just because you're older, you can tell me what to do, but do whatever you want yourself. That's hypocritical and unfair. I refuse to let you control my life any longer!" I shout in frustration. Tadashi loses his usually cool demeanor and it scares me a bit.

"You know what Hiro? Fine! If you wanna act like a kid, you can be treated like one as well. Do whatever the heck you want! But don't come crying to me if you get into trouble and need help, because so help me, I will NOT come to bail you out anymore." He shouts. I gulp. Tadashi rarely yells at me. But still, I hold my ground.

"Is that a threat?" I snort. He glares at me lightly. "That's a promise Hiro." He says seriously.

I admit that that sentence stung a bit. But he probably didn't mean it. If I was really in trouble, Tadashi would come for me. I know he would and he knows it too.

"You know you'd help me. You always do." I say smugly.

"Yeah? Well not anymore. Do whatever you want wise guy. Jump off a bridge for all I care. I won't come to save you." He says heartlessly, walking out of our room, slamming the door shut.

I wait a minute. Two minutes. Three minutes. Four minutes. Five minutes…..ten minutes. Fifteen minutes!

Where's Tadashi? I think. He's usually back in our room by now, hugging me and telling me that he didn't mean it and I say it too, though half-heartedly most of the time. He generally comes back into our room within 10 minutes. It's been over 20 now. I start to get worried and I'm tempted to go downstairs and apologize myself, but something stops me. Something in me just snaps all of a sudden. Tadashi won't be able to nag me anymore. I'm…free!  
>I can't go through the front door or Tadashi and Aunt Cass will no doubt see me. That leaves the window. I glance at the windows in our room. Sure, we're on the second floor, but I really wanna make some money, but more importantly want to mop the floor with older guys that think they got a match in the bag but then face me and lose. Bot fighting is life.<p>

I open the window and look down, but suddenly wish I hadn't. It's a REALLY long way down and suddenly, I don't want to leave. I'm about to reconsider going out, but a voice changes my mind quickly.

I hear a knock on our door followed by Tadashi's ever so patient voice. I think he's about to apologize, but boy was I off. Big time at that.

"Hiro, Aunt Cass made me come up here and get you. She made extra stuff for her dessert shift and has leftovers and says if you want some, come get it." He says plainly. It was evident that Aunt Cass forced him to come up here.

My heart sunk. So that was it? If something happened to me, he'd just leave me alone? Some brother.

"Not hungry, especially if you're gonna be there." I say nonchalantly.

"Fine, whatever. She made me come here anyway. Not like I actually WANTED you to come in the first place." He says, walking back down.

I felt anger take over me. I quickly get my bed sheets off of my bed and make a rope down the window. I head into our shared closet and yank out a few stuffed animals that kept for…this is beside the point. I stuff them in my bed and cover it with the comforter to make it look like I'm sleeping in it. Grabbing a bunch of crumbled up bills and my mega bot, I shove them in my hoodie's pockets. Then I proceed to climb down. Finally, I use the bed sheet and my amazing hand eye coordination skills to close the window and leave a bit of the bed sheet out so I could climb back in when I get back.

After that, I rush to the alley where there's always a bot fight going on. Getting into the circle, some people recognize me and back up. I smirk in satisfaction. I whip out mega bot and face the poor guy that stayed in the circle, preparing to fight me. "Let's go." He says with a smug smile.

Guess he thinks I'm an easy target. Poor him. I pull out 50 bucks and put it in the betting tray. The ignorant guy puts in 50 as well. Our bots fight and mine wins in no time at all. The guy's confused and demands a re-match to which I oblige. This is gonna be a fun night.

Tadashi POV

I can't believe Hiro said that to my face. He knows how painful it is to bring up mom and dad but he did it anyway. He must really be mad. To top it all off, I tried to get him downstairs. I didn't want to admit I was wrong, because I think he should apologize first. I always apologize first and I thought he needed to learn to as well. So I went to our room and told him Aunt Cass wanted him, but in actuality I wanted him to come. Then he had to shut me down like that and make me feel worthless? Well fine. If he wants to be a baby then whatever.

I try my hardest to be the perfect older brother to him and this is how he repays me? I try not to be too hard on him and let him do what he wants, but there's a limit to this sort of thing and I draw the line at bot fighting. It's not safe. There are all sorts of ruffians lingering there and it's no place for a kid of 14 years old. Even if he IS a super genius. But if he wants to deliberately disobey me like that then so be it.

I don't care what happens to him.

…

Okay that was a blatant lie. I couldn't live with myself knowing that Hiro was hurt or in trouble. I can't be that cruel. That's why I'm relieved beyond explanation that he hasn't done irrational like try to sneak out or anything. I would've seen him because my eyes have been glued to the stairs since he refused my (Or Aunt Cass's as he sees it) offer.

I sigh and take my hat off, messing up my hair. I trudge upstairs and get to bed without even changing. Usually I'd have definitely apologized to the little guy by now, but this time, I just didn't want to bother. Aunt Cass suggested that if I leave him alone for a while after our fights (Yeah, I told Aunt Cass about them) he'd come through and apologize eventually. Well she was definitely wrong. Hiro hadn't said two words to me unless I initiated conversation. I look to his bed. He didn't even attempt to say anything to me. His smallish lump of a body was covered by his comforter. He really was trying to avoid me. I sigh and sink deeper into my bed.

I can't believe this. Lately, Hiro and I have been arguing more than ever. It's not normal sibling bickering. It's not healthy. This is starting to worry me. Hiro's the only direct family I've got left. If I lose him, I'll break. I don't know if he even cares anymore. I gotta set things straight. I love my baby brother and though he's too stubborn, arrogant, and prideful to admit it anymore, he loves me too. At least I hope he does. It's been so long since we've hung out or bonded as brothers. Maybe that sounds a bit gay and girly, but it's the truth. I miss spending time with the guy and it makes me wonder if he does too.

I figure it's time to try. I push the covers off of me and look at Hiro's small lump. "Hey Hiro?" I call. No response.

"Hiro c'mon. I know you're mad, but the truth is, I can't handle us fighting anymore. It's breaking me apart. I don't want to constantly argue with you all the time. I want us to go back to old times. You know?" I say hopefully. I wait a few seconds, hoping he'll say something, but he doesn't. I sulk for a second before looking at Hiro again.

"Hiro please?" I say with tears in my eyes. "Please Hiro. I need you. Remember? You said you needed me too once. A long time ago yeah, but you still said it. You must have meant it. C'mon bone head, I can't live like this anymore. I hope you miss those times as much as I do. We can even go get some ice cream if you want." I say pleadingly.

Still no response. I'm about to fully lose it before I notice something. Hiro hadn't moved since I walked in. maybe he was already sleeping and I was just making a fool out of myself. I face palm myself and walk toward his bed with a tired smile. I yank his covers off and immediately feel hot anger come to my face. The little rat SNUCK out! How he got passed me amazes me until I see the window in our room. Did he? No way. We're two flights up, he couldn't possibly have…could he?

I practically tear the window up and struggle to a bit actually, though I don't know why. Then I see it. Hiro's bed sheet. It's hanging down conveniently waiting for him to get home. I huff a breath of pure anger and shut the window. That boy is going to get himself killed. I rush back onto my bed and call him. One ring, two, three, four, five…and voicemail. I try again. No luck. One more time….zilch.

I began to panic. What if something happened to him? What if he's in trouble? What if…wait a second! Hiro's mad at me. If that's the case, he's probably just ignoring me. Worrying me over nothing. Well I wasn't about to just cave and search the entire city for him. If he was in trouble, he'd call.

Right?

Maybe I'll stay up till he gets home just in case.

Hiro's POV

I was in the ZONE. I was making a new record here. Nearly 1000 dollars in my hands. I stuffed it all in my hoodie pocket and started heading home. I checked my phone. Not only was it over past midnight sitting at 1:15, but I had three missed calls from Tadashi! I guess he figured out that I snuck out. I was about to hit redial, when I remembered that we were supposed to be fighting. And besides, Tadashi said himself that he wouldn't care if anything happened to me so what was the point in calling him just so he could yell at me? That's right, there isn't one. I shoved the phone in with the money and continued walking, hands in my pockets, face down.

"Little kids like you shouldn't be wandering the streets alone, let alone going bot fighting by themselves, LET ALONE striking people clear of their money." A voice said, knocking me into a mode of cautiousness.

I looked up to see one of the guys I had beaten in a bot fight a few rounds ago. "I think you need to be taught a lesson, don't you?" he asked tauntingly. I gulped and vigorously shook my head. He cracked his knuckles and started advancing toward me.

"H-Hey buddy take it easy there. That hoodie wasn't cheap." I say as he yanked me up to his eye level. He growled at me and I flinched. "You've got a smart mouth, let's fix that shall we?" he asked, serving a good clean punch right on my mouth. I quickly covered it with my hands and screamed in pain, but no one heard.

"End of the line. No one's here to save you." He said menacingly. I silently let tears fall rampant down my face. This guy had the potential to kill me. Would he?

"TADASHI!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, hurting my throat, mouth, and ears. The man wacked me in the head, bringing a ringing sensation to it. I felt my vision blur, but I didn't go unconscious.

I felt him repeatedly kick and punch me. "T-T-Tada-a-ashi?" I stutter/whisper. The man laid a punch in my stomach and I groaned in pain. This was it. Tadashi really DID mean what he said about not caring. About not helping me. About not giving a flip if I was in trouble. I felt fresh tears fall down my sore and most likely bruised face. The pain hit me full force. Not the physical, the emotional. I could've avoided this were it not for my stupid prideful personality. All because I was too stubborn to apologize to Tadashi.

I certainly wouldn't have quit bot fighting, but maybe I would've stopped betting on it or something. We could've talked it out and been hanging out right now, but instead I was having brutal punches thrown at me. I moaned in misery and distraught.

The pain was coming to me now. The physical and emotional combined was too much for me to bear and I felt my eyes closing shut.

"That oughtta teach ya a valuable lesson ya little shrimp." I heard him say before I completely blanked out.

I slowly felt my eyes open and looked around. Oh yeah, I was brutally beaten the crap out of a while ago. I felt kinda sore all over and got up. I was in the middle of the alleyway. I took out my phone as I was walking. It was 2:30. Not only was it beyond late, but I had no more missed calls from Tadashi. He really didn't care. Otherwise he'd be out here looking for me. I threw my phone as hard as I could down the sidewalk and repeatedly jumped on it.

Then I fell to the ground and began sobbing like a baby. Tadashi didn't care. I could've died and he wouldn't have spared a glance. Wouldn't have shed a single tear. Wouldn't even wish I was still alive.

The aftermath of the punches and kicks came and hit me like a car. I was full blown in hysterics now. I couldn't help but break down. If only I simply had the guts to apologize. But no. my stupidity had been my downfall.

Lately, Tadashi and I had been arguing too much for my liking. He'd nag at me for the simplest little things and then some. But I couldn't help it. I know I did these things on purpose because I WANTED to agitate him, but I had a good reason to. Lately, Tadashi was hanging at school more than home. It's been bothering me ever since school started. I tried to talk to him about it, but he'd been too busy to even talk to me!

I finally manned up enough to make it home.

When I made it, I reached for the bed sheet. I yanked it down, but retrieved my arm when I felt pain surge through it. I didn't have the slightest idea what my face looked like so I covered it up with my hoodie in case Tadashi woke up before me and saw me. I tried to brace myself as much as possible and then finally climbed up to the window. Slowly and softly, I opened the window and winced in pain as my arm couldn't take much more of this torture. I snuck in, shut the window softly and turned around only to see Tadashi right in front of my face. I gulped and flinched backward.

Tadashi POV

I was waiting forever for Hiro to jump through that window all smug and happy and ready for verbal assault from yours truly, but it was when 1:00 hit that I truly became worried. I was debating whether or not to call him again or not, but I didn't, thinking he was about to come every 5 minutes.

I heard some faint rustling eventually and saw Hiro climb in, hoodie over his face. Why'd he cover his face? I walked quickly to him and positioned myself ever so close to his face, but it was dark and I couldn't see anything besides his big brown doe eyes. They were laced with fear and shock.

"Hiro Hamada! Do you have even the slightest idea what time it is and how long you've been gone?!" I whisper yelled at him, careful to keep my voice to a minimum in fear of waking up Aunt Cass. He turned away, not able to meet my glare.

"Oh what do you care anyway?" he replied, crossing his arms, but I noticed two things. When he did, he winced and uncrossed them, and his voice was more…stressed sounding than normal.

I felt a stab in my heart. This conversation sounded eerily familiar to the one we had just a few hours ago. "Hiro, how could you even ask that?" I asked. Wow, I was getting strange senses of déjà vu coming in.

"Oh please Tadashi. You said it yourself. You don't care at all. I could jump off of a bridge and you wouldn't care." He said in such a dark tone, it made me shiver a bit. "I should've just done that. Jumped off a bridge." He muttered in a voice he thought I couldn't hear, but I did.

"Hiro don't say that! I was just mad, that's all. I waited for so many agonizing minutes, waiting for you to come home safe and sound, and you have no idea how happy I am that you are." I defended, hoping to death he'd believe me.

He chuckled, but it wasn't good hearted laughing. It was malicious and it started to scare me a bit. "Hiro?" I asked. He turned around, hoodie still covering his face.

"Stop lying to me and yourself Tadashi. We both know you don't care. You said it. You made sure I heard you loud and clear, and don't worry, I did. I get it. You won't be there to help me. I read ya loud and clear." He said bluntly. I shake my head. "Hiro, I promise I'll help you if you need me." I say honestly. He shakes his head too.

"Then, Th-then where were you?" he whispered, sounding heartbroken. I blinked in confusion. "Hiro, what on earth are you talking about?" I asked.

"Never mind, I'm going to bed." Hiro said, limping toward his bed. Wait limping?!

"Oh no mister. We're finally gonna settle this." I say, grabbing his hoodie and pulling him back. In the process, I managed to get the hoodie off of his face and flinched at what I saw.

My baby bro's face was covered in bruises. His mouth a fresh purple with green poking in here and there. Black eyes, and frown so deep, I was getting caught in it.

"Hiro! What happened?!" I demand. He gulps and looks at me, helpless and at a loss. "I went bot fighting and got beaten the shit out of. What the hell did you think happened?!" he questioned smartly.

I think he was bracing himself for all the disappointment I was about to drop on him. Little did he know I was far from mad. The fact that he used curse words was enough proof for me that he was in severe pain. I raced to the bathroom, leaving a puzzled Hiro in my wake.

I came out a few minutes later. Hiro was now perched on his bed, sitting and staring down, kicking his legs about softly and ever so slightly. I took the wet cloth and ordered him to hold it to his face. He obeyed, fortunately.

My gaze shifted from his totaled face to his bony legs. They were bruised as well. The left one even looked swollen. I lightly tapped it and checked for a response. Hiro's eyes shut and then opened and then shut and opened again. I held back a laugh because he shut them in pain, and then had to open them because his black eye probably made it hurt more when he closed it. Then I wanted to slap myself. How could I think about laughing when Hiro was in no doubt unbearable pain?

I sighed and pulled out thick white bandages and coated Hiro's legs in them. Then I applied the cream on his face. He cringed multiple times, but was pretty patient throughout the whole thing. As I was finishing applying cream, I looked him dead in the eye.

"Hiro, I really don't want you to go bot fighting. I'm not trying to be dad. I just care about your safety. It tears me apart to see you like this. If I ever see the person who did this to you, I might just kill them. You don't understand what it's like to come home every day and worry about whether your brother's gone to do something dangerous that could lead to him getting hurt like this. I never meant to say that I wouldn't care Hiro. I could NEVER stop caring about you no matter what you do. I swear that on mom and dad's grave. I'm just glad you're in one piece." I said. Hiro didn't seem the least bit fazed by my confession and I felt my hopes of us patching things up drop instantly.

"Don't do this Tadashi." He said warningly.

"Do what?" I ask, oblivious.

"This! Act like you care and that you're the best brother in the whole world and then just give me the cold shoulder for the next few weeks!" he whisper shouted, voice cracking. I'm genuinely confused.

"Hiro, what are you talking about?" I ask carefully. Hiro sniffs and wipes at his eye softly.

"Ever since school started, you've been so busy hanging out with your friends. I mean, I totally get how it's your first year of college and all, but we're almost at the end of the first semester and you've been coming home late every single day. Then when I think we're gonna hang together on the weekends, you sleep in and hang out with your friends some more. I guess I just felt left out. At first, I let it happen, thinking hey, maybe Tadashi will still have time for me. But you never did. When I finally decided to talk to you about it, you waved it off as nothing so I just played along with that. Other than that, you were too busy to even TALK about how much you've been ignoring me. The only time you paid even the slightest bit of attention to me was when I did something out of line, which I admit I did on purpose sometimes because I just wanted to see you. Talk to you. Spend some time with you. Even if it wasn't sweet moments. I guess I never noticed all the anger building up and then I raged on you today. I didn't know what else to do. There was no way of getting you to pay attention to me unless I did things you hated." Hiro said softly, not meeting my gaze once more.

I stayed silent for a good minute before deciding to respond.

"Hiro, I really don't know what to say other than that I'm so sorry. There's nothing you could've done. This is my fault." I say sadly, suddenly regretting every time I yelled, nagged, or scolded him.

Hiro shrugged and laid down on his bed, lightly closing his eyes.

"W-Wait Hiro. When you were gone, I swear to god I was talking to that lump you left on your bed saying that I was sorry how we didn't spend much time together lately and that if you wanted, we could right then if you wanted to. But it turns out it wasn't you. It was just stuffed animals. Gah, my point is, I wanna make things right before we sleep Hiro." I say lamely. Hiro opened his eyes, searching my face for dishonesty.

"You mean it?" he asked. I nodded.

"Tadashi… I don't know…why would you ask all of a sudden?" he questions.

"I guess it just dawned on me that I neglected you." I said.

"So you won't do it anymore?" he asks hopefully.

"Hiro, if getting beat up is what it takes for you to understand that, then I'll take the punches next time. I can't stand to see you like this. Not now, not ever. I'll do my best not to spend too much time with my friends and make some "Hiro" time up, okay? Just you and me." I suggest.

Despite the dullness surrounding his face, Hiro's eyes light up with joy, hope, and happiness. "Yes Tadashi. Definitely okay with me." he says contently. I chuckle. "Great." I say, rubbing his tummy affectionately, though he winces uncontrollably at the touch.

"What's wrong Hiro?" I ask concerned. Hiro groans and point to his stomach in pain. Oh god, don't tell me he had bruises there too!

I lifted his shirt up to see nasty purplish bluish greenish and black marks on his belly. "Oh Hiro. Why?" I said sadly, medicating his wounds.

"I'm sorry Dashi." He whispered softly, sleep starting to take over him. I shake my head at his aloofness. Finally finished tending to his bruises I put the first aid kit back and head to my bed.

I glance at Hiro and think, "Wow he's an idiot. But he's my idiot brother. And I love him. And I always will love him." then drift off into a deep sleep.

So I'm sorry my last two stories in this story have been kinda dark. I've just been a bit moody and it's affecting my story writing. I'll make sure the next one I write is fluffy, sweet, and heartwarming. Promise! Till next time,

-Girl you wouldn't expect


	6. Chapter 6

Brothers

6

Ages

Hiro: seven

Tadashi: fifteen

(Remember the stories don't necessarily correlate with each other, so that's why Tadashi isn't exactly four years older than Hiro like he is in my other chapters. Just clarifying in case someone was lost).

Tadashi's POV

I woke up and stretched like a monkey. Yawning, I glanced over at Hiro's bed. I did that everyday just to make sure he was still there. I saw rustling under his bed and got curious.

I tip toed over to his bed and yanked the covers off fast and yelled "BOO!" Hiro jumped up, alarmed. A wrench barely missed my face in the process, making me jump as well.

I looked to see a beyond startled Hiro. He had a hand clenching his heart and his breathing significantly quickened. "God Tadashi, what's wrong with you?!" he exclaimed, flailing his arms about. I chuckle.

"Well in my defense, you DID throw a wrench at me." I say. "That's not fair. That was just an accident. And it didn't hit you." He says, sticking his tongue out.

"Yeah yeah. So what's my little bro workin on? And more importantly, did he get any sleep?" I ask, raising a brow. He smiles sheepishly, scratching his head.

"Just a little something. Nothing that big or anything. And I might've gotten like an hour or two of sleep so don't worry." Hiro says dismissively, getting down to pick up the wrench.

While he's not paying attention, I grab the little metal box looking thing he was working on. While I examine it, I continue to question him.

"Hiro, I know you've really gotten into robotics since you found out you're a genius, but please don't let that affect your sleeping patterns. You could get sick, or worse, sleep deprived!" I say that last past in mock drama, though I am serious about him needing more sleep.

Hiro rolls his eyes. "Oh great. Protective Tadashi's here. Just what I needed on beautiful Saturday." He says sarcastically.

I chuckle. "You know you love it when I'm all over protective." I joke. Hiro puts his hand on his face and widens his eyes. "Oh yeah! It's what I live for. Please fuss over every little thing I do big brother!" he says satirically. I laugh and he joins in.

"So seriously, what is this?" I ask, referring to the metal box thingy. Hiro snatches from my hands in a heartbeat. "It's nothing!" he says quickly, shoving it under his pillow and pulling the covers over it, as if that would keep me away from it. I raise my eyebrows at him. He giggles sheepishly. "Maybe you'll find out one day." He says with a shrug.

That's when I realize that Hiro's breathing didn't slow down from when I scared him yet. It was heavy and stressed sounding. "Hey Hiro, you okay? You're not still scared are you?" I ask, concerned. Hiro punches me in the shoulder and shakes his head. "Chill Tadashi. You're not that scary. Even with those dimples." He says playfully.

I remain stoic and Hiro notices. "Bro, I'm fine, honest. It's okay. I know you were just kidding." Hiro assures me. That's when I notice that Hiro's voice sounds a bit different too. I walk to him and place my hand on his forehead. He just stares at me, silent. It's warm. So warm in fact, that it's burning up my hand almost. I quickly yank it back and look at my brother carefully now.

Reddish face. I first assumed that it was red because the lack of sleep. Now that I think about it, he was sniffing a bit more than usual. His eyes were a little red where they were supposed to be white.

"Stay here, get into bed, and don't move. I'll be right back." I say, going out of the room, but not before hearing Hiro mutter "Worry wart. I'm not even sick. I don't FEEL sick."

I shake my head. He's so reckless. He shouldn't have stayed up all night doing god knows what with that metal box. Grabbing the thermometer from the kitchen cabinet, saying a quick good morning to Aunt Cass, and getting a glass of water, I run back upstairs to our room.

Thankfully, Hiro listened for once and was lying in bed like I told him to. Unfortunately, he was working on that box again. "Hiro put that thing away." I say. He huffs, but none the less places it back under his pillow.

I stick the thermometer into his mouth and sit on his bed. He stares at me and I stare back. We begin an unspoken staring contest. He always beats me, but this time, I'm not even close to cracking when his eye starts twitching. I smirk and cross my arms. He rolls his eyes, but that does it for him. His eyes reluctantly blink and he has a look of defeat.

I fist pump the air. "AW YEAH! I beat you!" I cheer, doing a stupid vitory dance.

"Whatever, I usually always win. You just got lucky." He says, dropping the thermometer out of his mouth in the process. I sigh and pick it up. He looks down. "Sorry Dashi." He says solemnly. I pat him on the shoulder. "It's okay buddy. It's been two minutes anyway. You're good." I say, checking the thermometer. I notice him look up and anxiously wait for me to read it.

"Ooooh Hiro. You're gonna have a boring weekend. You're not gonna be doing much with a fever of 100.1 degrees Fahrenheit." I say. Hiro huffs a breath of annoyance. "I don't get it. I don't feel sick at all!" he exclaims.

I chuckle. "Oh don't worry Hiro, you'll feel the aftershocks soon enough. See, this is why you need SLEEP." I say smartly. "Pshh, I'll be fine within a few hours. You'll see." He says coolly. I roll my eyes. Typical Hiro. Not taking things serious as always. I do hope he gets better though. No one likes a cranky Hiro. He loses his sarcastic demeanor, which isn't the bad part. The bad part is that he gets angry and throws a fit.

Hiro got out of bed and looked for his shoes. "What do you think you're doing?" I demand. Hiro looks at me. "Looking for my shoes and going downstairs to get breakfast?" he says as if it were obvious. "Uh uh mister disease. You're not going anywhere. A kid your age is extremely contagious. You're not getting anywhere near Aunt Cass." I say, shoving back to bed.

Hiro rolls his eyes sassily. "Okay, first of all, what a lame name. Mister disease? Really bro? Second, how come you're so worried about Aunt Cass, but then you proceed to make close physical contact with me huh? You're more prone to get sick than her." He says, raising a brow. "Look Hiro, I don't mind getting sick. Besides, I've got an immune system of steel. I'll be fine. Aunt Cass on the other hand, she gets sick by sniffing flowers. Coming to contact with a sick seven year old isn't gonna do her any good." I respond.

"Whatever. Just bring me breakfast." He says. I raise an eyebrow at his command. "Please?" he asks, showing his teeth gap with his dopey smile. Shaking my head, I head down to the kitchen to get him something to eat.

When I head back in, I see him tinkering with that metal box yet AGAIN. "That's it." I say, grabbing that box out of his hands. "Hey!" he cries, his voice a bit hoarse. "No more science stuff until you're better. You need rest." I say firmly. He huffs and glares at me, but I don't budge. He then looks away from me.

"C'mon Hiro. This is for your own good. I'm doing this to help you. You'll thank me when you're better. Now eat your breakfast." I say, handing him the tray of food.

He looks at it, then at me, crinkling his nose. "Gross, oatmeal." He says dejectedly, shoving the tray away from him. "That's gonna make you feel better Hiro." I say patiently. He squints. "I don't feel bad though." He says stubbornly, crossing his arms. I sigh. "Want me to feed you?" I ask. He shakes his head and doesn't look at me.

Gosh he was a stubborn little kid. I grab the tray and get some oatmeal on the spoon. Hiro glances at me with an expression that says, 'I'm not gonna eat that even if you feed me.'

I read somewhere about reverse psychology and thought this was a great way to test it out.

I wait till the oatmeal isn't hot enough to burn my tongue and shove it in my mouth. I'm not the biggest fan of oatmeal, but I had to act like I was to make this work. I ate another spoonful and another. After every spoonful, Hiro would open his mouth to say something, but then shut it. I inwardly smirked. This just might work. After my fifth spoon, Hiro lost it.

"Dashiii, that's MY breakfast! You can't just eat all of it!" he cries, crossing his arms again. Got him. I love how even though he's a super genius, he has his childish moments so techniques like this still worked.

"Well, you didn't want it, so I figured, why let it go to waste." I say with a shrug. "Give it Dashi. Get your own breakfast." He says whiningly. I hand the tray back to him and he downs the oatmeal in no time at all.

I smile, satisfied. Hiro looks at my expression and his expression turn sour. "Dashi! You did that on purpose." He said, cheeks puffed out. It looked pretty cute to see him like that.

"Yup. But hey, now you're gonna get better much faster." I say, holding back a laugh. He pushes the tray toward me and I see that a spoonful is still left. "Hiro, please finish it?" I ask. He shakes his head. "No way, you finish it." He says playfully. I shrug and eat the last spoonful. He smiles at me, and it makes me nervous. "Hiro, what'd you do to that oatmeal? You didn't spit it out did you!?" I ask. Hiro makes a disgusted expression. "Gross Tadashi, no way." He says, repulsed that I would even suggest such a nasty thing. I decide to let it go and get up.

Hiro gets up too. I point to his bed demandingly and wait for him to retreat. "C'mon Dashi, gimmie back my project." He begs.

"No Hiro."

"Please?!"

"Hiro, NO."

"Dashi c'monnnnn!" he whines.

"Hiro, I want you to get better." I say firmly.

"What's messing with my project have to do with me getting better?" he asks.

"You need rest, you're sleep deprived. Go to bed." I order.

Hiro sighs and reluctantly gets back into bed.

"Dashi this is pointless and boring! I'm not even tired." Hiro complains. I feel my patience lose me. "Well try Hiro! Go to bed! I don't wanna hear any more complaining from you!" I say raising my voice. Hiro winces at my tone and covers himself with his covers. I sigh.

Poor Hiro. I know how much he hates being yelled at. In fact, sometimes he can't even handle it. I feel bad.

"H-Hiro?" I call. No response. I pull the covers off of him. He looks at me blankly. "Hiro, you can talk." I say. He opens his mouth, but I stop him. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell. You didn't do anything wrong. I just need to learn to be patient." I say.

Hiro smiles and hugs me. "You're pretty patient to put of me most of the time Dashi." He assures me. I smiled. "Thanks little guy. But really, you do need rest. Please at least TRY to go to sleep?" I ask. Hiro nods. "Deal." He says, closing his eyes immediately.

No more than two minutes later, he opens them softly and looks at me hesitantly. "What is it?" I ask soothingly. "I'm sorry Dashi, I'm trying! I really am, but I just can't go to sleep." He says softly, whimpering. "Shhh, it's okay. Just relax." I say, sliding down next to him.

"Dashi, it's hot. Like really hot now." He whines. I look at him. "Aftershocks." I whisper. He looks down. "Don't worry bro, you'll be just fine." I say calmly. He nods and snuggles into me.

"Will you tell me a story?" he asks hopefully. I think for a while and nod. "Alright little guy." I say

"Okay. Once upon a time, there were two sisters-"How old were they"- Let's see… One was 15 and one was 7. They got along really well, and so one day, the younger one-"What was her name?"- Uh, her name was Hillary. So anyway, one day Hillary asked the older sister-"what was _her_ name?"- hmm, her name was Tarry. So as I was saying, One day Hillary asked Tarry if they could go to the park. Tarry agreed and so they went. When they got there, Hillary begged to be pushed on the swings and Tarry agreed. Then Hillary wanted to go on the seesaw and Tarry agreed. Then Hillary got hungry and so Tarry bought them both some ice cream…."

Hiro was knocked out before I could continue. I carefully got up to go downstairs and inform Aunt Cass about Hiro's state when his voice stopped me. "Dashi? Hillary and Tarry. They're really me and you aren't they?" he whisper asked with a yawn. I smile. "Yeah, maybe." I say teasingly. Hiro smiles in his half-awake state. "Night Dashi. Thanks for taking care of me." he whispers, drifting off. I lean down to kiss his forehead. "Anytime bone head. Anytime." I say, leaving.

As I head downstairs, I start to feel a bit light headed. Then I cough a bit, followed by a sneeze. "Oh no…." I groan.

At least now I know why Hiro smiled as I ate the oatmeal. Eating after a sick person doesn't do well to the immune system.

Hope this is happier and maybe better than the other ones! Hope you enjoyed. Feel free to tell me anything that I could've done better. Be as brutally honest as you want, don't worry, I can take it. Feel free to leave any kind of feedback. Even if you want to tell me it sucked, go for it. That's your opinion, and I wanna hear it. Till next time

-girl you wouldn't expect


	7. Chapter 7

Brothers

7

Ages

Hiro: 7

Tadashi: 16

(Side note) I know I said my stories wouldn't correlate with each other, but this one slightly coincides with the last one (One where Hiro is sick) in a way. It's been a few weeks since the whole lack of sleep incident for them btw. Okay, enjoy!

Tadashi's POV

I woke up to the feeling that someone was watching me. I get up and rub my eyes open and am shocked to see Hiro, Aunt Cass, Fred, and Honey Lemon all in my room smiling at me.

"Gah!" what is this?!" I cry. Hiro smiled extra largely at me. "C'mon Dashi think! What's today?!" he asks anxiously.

I think to myself. Is it Hiro's first day of junior high? No, that's not for another few weeks. Is it Hiro's birthday? No that's not for another few weeks as well. Is it…hmm, I really don't know. WAIT! God, I've been so caught up in making sure Hiro's life is in check, I totally blanked out and forgot it was MY birthday!

I blushed in embarrassment and face palmed myself. The others laughed hysterically.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY TADASHI!" they all cried merrily. I blushed harder. "Guys, this wasn't necessary." I say modestly. They all laugh.

"It kind of was Tadashi. Hiro called us all last night and forced us to come!" Honey Lemon joked. I blushed again and shot a playful glare at my baby bro. he shrugs comically.

Normal POV

"Well, let' go down and celebrate the day Tadashi was born!" Aunt Cass announced, rushing downstairs, Fred and Honey Lemon following her.

Hiro stayed and ran into his older brother, tackling him into a huge hug. "Happy Birthday Dashi." He said happily. Tadashi smiled and gave him a mini noogie, causing Hiro to scoot away from him. "Gah! Tadashi, you know I hate it when you frazzle up my hair." He says irritated, but the older Hamada saw a hint of a smile creeping through.

"Sooooo, what'd you get me?!" Tadashi asked eagerly. Hiro metaphorically locked his lips and threw away the key, dashing to the door. But before the 7 year old tease could open it, Tadashi grabbed him and lifted him up.

Hiro squealed in surprise. "Dashi! Put me down." He said, laughing.

"No way little brother. Not until I get my gift." Tadashi countered. Hiro smirked. "Well then, I guess you're gonna be carrying me for a long time then Dashi, because I'm giving you my present last. After everyone leaves." Hiro said.

"Wrong answer!" Tadashi cried playfully, tackling his younger brother on his bed and pinning him down. "Tadashi c'mon, lemme go." Hiro said, though the younger brother was secretly amused.

"No way little bro. you're about to get it." Tadashi says evilly, beginning to ruthlessly tickle Hiro. The younger Hamada brother shrieked with laughter. "T-Tadashi q-quit it!" Hiro cried. Tadashi laughed at Hiro's predicament.

He showed no signs of stopping, tickling his ribs, stomach, and armpits, and Hiro couldn't take much more. "P-please T-Tadashi! I'm d-dying h-here!" Hiro begged, tears coming into his brown eyes. "Will you give me my present?" Tadashi questioned. Hiro shook his head furiously and so Tadashi went to tickling the poor boy's feet instead. Hiro squealed and shook vigorously. "S-stop it!" he begged mercifully. Tadashi squeezed his finger through Hiro's toes to get the maximum tickle effect and Hiro roared with laughter.

"O-okay, I-I'll give it to y-y-you! Just –stop!" Hiro begged. Tadashi finally stopped his torture. "Thanks little bro." he said evilly.

Hiro breathed in and out heavily, trying to catch his breath. He glared at Tadashi who smiled sweetly in return. "Sorry Hiro, but you know, it's my birthday and there's wishes to be fulfilled and such, so- HEY!" Tadashi yelled, as Hiro raced downstairs while he was talking.

Tadashi shook his head. "Unbelievable." He stated, chasing after the little liar.

He went down only to see the café only to see that it was decorated with banners, streamers, balloons, and a LOT of mini robots. It was nerd/birthday heaven. Tadashi gasped.

"Whoa, all this? For me?" he asked in disbelief. Fred, Honey Lemon, Aunt Cass, and even Hiro nodded. Tadashi shot Hiro a look that said what they talked about upstairs wasn't settled, who simply shot Tadashi a dopey teeth gapped smile and friendly wave.

The party overall was great. There was way more than enough cake and other sweets, hence it was a party in a café. Tadashi was having loads of fun with his friends and Hiro. Aunt Cass was taking loads of pictures, and Hiro was eating loads of gummy bears. Tadashi even got a video call from his two friends from SFIT, (San Fransokyo institute of technology) Gogo and Wasabi saying Happy Birthday.

Finally, the gift giving part came and Honey Lemon was eager to go first.

"Oh Tadashi! You must open mine first! I hope you'll love it! I made sure you would, but let's be sure. One can't ever be too certain you know!" Honey babbled. Tadashi grinned at his over eager and bubbly friend. Honey handed him a lime green wrapped present decorated with forest green leaves. Tadashi opened it to reveal an assortment of test tubes. He wasn't sure what they were exactly and turned to Honey Lemon for an explanation.

"The test tubes are filled these special chemicals I invented myself! They're actually different emotions, the colors! There's a chart in there that explains it. Yellow is happy, pink is love, and so on! You can put a drop on someone's skin and that emotion is enhanced for them! There's enough for 10 drop so each emotion so use them wisely! Ohhh try one now!" Honey Lemon suggested eagerly.

Tadashi shrugged. "Why not?" he said, taking a look at the chart. Picking the orange one up, he called to Fred. "Yo Fred, come here." Fred came to Tadashi, a bit confused. "What emotion is it?" he asked curiously. Tadashi smiled. "You'll see." Tadashi said mysteriously, placing a drop of the orange substance on his friend's arm.

A moment later, Fred's usually silly grin and warm, somewhat lazy eyes were replaced with a neutral and no nonsense expression. Tadashi nudged Hiro. "Pst, ask him a question. Go on." He said. Hiro was puzzled, but did so anyway.

"Hey Fred, what's your favorite color?" Hiro asked. "Blue." He responded plainly. "Why?" Hiro questioned. "Because it is aesthetically pleasing." Fred responded sophisticatedly. Hiro was taken aback.

"Wow Tadashi, what emotion _was_ that?" Hiro asked. Tadashi laughed. "Serious." The older of the two responded. Hiro was shocked. "That's sick Honey!" Hiro exclaimed. Honey Lemon blushed. "Oh thank you Hiro, it was nothing really, just some mixing here and there." She replied modestly. "Seriously Honey, this is gift is insane. Thanks!" Tadashi exclaimed. Honey blushed once more, waving it off, but extremely pleased that Tadashi liked it.

Fred went next. "Here Tadashi, open it." He said bluntly. Tadashi accepted the newspaper covered gift. "Wow, serious Fred is a bit monotone huh?" Tadashi mused. Honey and Hiro had to agree. Tadashi unwrapped the newspaper to reveal a glass figurine of him, Hiro, Honey Lemon, Aunt Cass, and even Fred himself. Tadashi was giving Hiro a piggy back ride, Honey giving peace, Fred was adjusting his beanie, and Aunt Cass had a cake tray in her hand. The whole thing was elegant, shiny, and crystal like.

Tadashi stared at it in wonder. "Whoa. Fred this is amazing!" Tadashi said in absolute awe. "Thank you Tadashi. I had my ice sculptor make it. Apparently, he can work with glass too." Fred responded. Tadashi gave a side glance to Honey Lemon. "Hey Honey, how long does this emotion thing last?" he asked. Honey shrugged. "It lasts anywhere from 5 minutes to an hour." She responded.

"OHH, me next! Me next!" Aunt Cass said, barging in with a small gift bag. Tadashi looked at her with a tired smile. "Aunt Cass, you didn't have to get me anything." Tadashi said, embarrassed. Aunt Cass waved it off. "Oh Tadashi, save the speech you give me every birthday and take the gift." Aunt Cass insisted, shoving the tiny gift bag into Tadashi's hands.

Tadashi wondered what it could be and then finally reached in and felt something cold and metal. He pulled out a pair of silver keys. He gasped heavily. "AUNT CASS NO WAY!" he screamed. Aunt Cass nodded and jumped up and down. "I bought you your own moped like you've been wanting!" she said excitedly. Tadashi broke into a crazy grin and burst into excitement, rushing outside to go see it, Honey Lemon and Fred following him.

Hiro stayed behind with Aunt Cass. He sighed and Aunt Cass noticed. "Hiro, what's wrong?" she asked. Hiro looked at her with sad eyes. "What if…what if Tadashi doesn't like my gift as much as you Honey Lemon's and Fred's? I mean, emotion induced chemicals? Super shiny and awesome glass figurine? A flipping moped? My gift just seems lame in comparison." He admitted.

Aunt Cass hugged him. "Oh Hiro. I'm sure whatever you got him is just perfect. He loves you, you know that. He won't care as long as you thought to get himself something meaningful." She assured. Hiro nodded, though half-heartedly.

Tadashi eventually came back in, without his friends. "They had to go home, it's getting late." Tadashi answered his aunt's questioning look. She nodded and yawned, saying she was going to retire as well. With a final birthday hug and kiss, Aunt Cass walked to her room.

Tadashi quickly grabbed Hiro, flung him over his back and raced upstairs. "Tadashi put me down." Hiro said, amused. Tadashi did as his younger brother said and threw him on his bed. Hiro covered himself in fear of being tickled again. Tadashi chuckled. "Don't worry little bro, not again, although I totally should for how you tricked me this morning." Tadashi said. Hiro waved it off and buried himself under his covers. Tadashi wasn't having any of it though.

The newly dubbed 16 year old yanked the sheets away and tapped his foot expectantly. Hiro played dumb and gave Tadashi an innocent look.

"You wanna give me my present now?" he asked. Hiro shook his head. "Why not?" he asked. Hiro remained silent.

"Hiro, did you forget? Because it's okay. I won't be mad if that's what you're worried about." Tadashi said. Hiro twiddled his thumbs and bit his lip nervously, gaze shifting left and right violently.

"Tadashi, I didn't forget. How could I possibly forget? I just… I don't know if you'll even like it compared to all the other great gifts you got today." Hiro said nervously. Tadashi patted his brother on the shoulder comfortingly. "Hiro, I don't care what you got me. I just wanna know what it is. Knowing that you at least cared enough to put some effort is enough for me." Tadashi reassured Hiro. The younger Hamada brother looked uncertain still.

"Hiro c'mon. Don't be ridiculous. This is crazy. I'll still love you, crappy gift or not." Tadashi said teasingly. Hiro gulped.

"Gah! Tadashi you don't get it. You always give me great gifts. The best ones. I've gotten you stupid gifts every year and you know it. The best thing I did was give you a picture of a robot and even that was pretty sad. This year, I thought I made a good gift, the perfect gift even, now that I'm a genius and all, but I… I mean after all those incredible gifts. It's nothing. It's just another childish loser gift." Hiro said sadly.

"Hey hey hey. Don't be like that. C'mon Hiro, I loved those gifts. They weren't loser gifts." Tadashi defended.

"Yeah right. You're only saying that to make me feel better." Hiro said, arms crossed in a pouty manner.

Tadashi thought for a moment before running into their shared closet. He soon came back with a cardboard box and placed it in front of Hiro.

Hiro's POV

He shoved a cardboard box in front of me. Why'd he do that? Wait a second. It couldn't be….could it? No way…is it? I had to know. I looked to Tadashi for an explanation.

"Open it." He urged.

I carefully took the lid off to see all the gifts I had gotten Tadashi for his birthday the past years. A yo-yo that I tried to make, but epically failed. The string was frayed and the base of the yo-yo was cracked. A note I wrote for him in nearly unreadable handwriting was framed and tucked in the corner. A stuffed bunny with a chewed ear was laying in the middle. Even the robot picture was there, neatly folded. All my loser gifts, in this cardboard box. Tadashi had kept them!?

"Dashi? Why? How? When?" I was at a loss for words.

"I told you Hiro, they aren't loser gifts. They're Hiro gifts and I love them, just like I love you." He said, giving me a caring look. I nearly melted at his words. I got my confidence back and was ready.

Reaching under my pillow, I pulled out Tadashi's gift. I hide it behind me and face him. "Alright, now before I hand it over, keep in mind that I'm terrible at wrapping things so I didn't bother. It would've just looked horrible." I say cautiously, still a bit apprehensive to fork over the gift.

"Quit worrying so much Hiro. Wow, there's a sentence I never thought I'd say." Tadashi said with a laugh. I smiled. With a deep breath, I closed my eyes and handed Tadashi his gift.

He made a noise of astonishment. "Wow, Hiro. This is that same metal box thingy you were working on when you were sick that day isn't it?" he asked, amazed. I nodded, opening my eyes. "Told you one day you'd find out what it was.

"So what's it do?" he asked excitedly. I smiled at his reaction. I really wanted him to like it and I crossed my fingers that he would.

"Alright, well as you can see, there's a lot of buttons on it. So go ahead and push one." I say hesitantly. Tadashi eagerly click the blue one and the room suddenly gets extremely cold and we both shiver.

"Wow Hiro, don't tell me this thing can change the temperature?!" Tadashi asked, bewildered. I nod shyly. Tadashi's eyes bug out and he clicks the yellow button. The room gets really hot and I have to take off my hoodie due to the intense heat.

Tadashi then presses the green button and it becomes pleasant weather.

"Yeah, the buttons on that side are basically the four seasons. One side controls that. Another controls wind patterns, and another controls rain, snow, sleet and hail. The downside is that it only effects this room. That's how it's programmed, sorry." I say sheepishly

"Hiro this is still super sick! Why are you apologizing?! It's insane, unbelievable, indescribable! How could you possibly be reluctant to show me this?! It's wicked!" Tadashi exclaimed, making my heart burst with happiness. He liked it! He really and truly liked it!

He tackled me into a massive bear hug and wouldn't let go for a long time. I melted into the hug and smiled like an idiot. Tadashi grinned and hugged me two more times and then told me to get to bed since it was late.

I changed, brushed my teeth, and hopped into my bed, getting cozy under the covers. I was about to drift off when I felt super cold. Like insanely cold. I tried to sandwich myself in my covers, but it didn't help. I then realized it was most likely Tadashi messing with me with his new gift.

I hopped out of bed, teeth chattering and jumped into Tadashi's. "D-Dashi, un-press the blue button, I-it's f-f-freezing!" I beg. Tadashi simply points to a spot next to him under the covers. I lean in and he unclicks the blue button. Finally, I stop shivering. I'm about to go back to my bed when Tadashi stops me.

"Hey uh, since you're already here, you might as well stay." He says with a nervous smile.

I grin. "Whatever you say Dashi." I responded with an eye roll. He smiles at my answer. I snuggle up close to him, happy beyond words that he liked my gift.

"Hey Hiro, that might've been my plan all along. To get you to stay here I mean." He says. I hold back a snort. I wanted to say 'nah really?', but instead in nuzzle up into him more and sigh contently. "You know for some reason, I don't mind." I say softly.

Happy Birthday Tadashi.


	8. Chapter 8

Brothers

8

Ages

Hiro: 10

Tadashi: 14

Normal POV 

Tadashi Hamada was downstairs in the kitchen trying to make a cake for Aunt Cass. Emphasis on trying. The robotics enthusiast didn't know jack about making a cake. Ironic since his Aunt was rather gifted in it.

The older Hamada brother sighed and glanced at the clock. Hiro's bus would be here in a few minutes and then he'd finally get some help. His little brother had a knack for figuring things out pretty quickly. Hiro would definitely be able to fix his sad excuse for cake batter.

On cue, Hiro's bus was heard and not much later, Hiro's footsteps were heard. The little genius ran into the lucky cat café, dropped his backpack on the floor and raced up to his room with a huge smile.

Tadashi laughed. He found it funny that Hiro missed his presence in the kitchen. No later than 30 seconds, Hiro's footsteps thundered downstairs and his eyes roamed around violently until they finally settled on Tadashi. His breathing was rapid, but his smile stayed.

"Tadashi! Tadashi! Guess what? Oh, forget the guessing part, I'll just tell you. I got the highest grade on my science test at school with a 100% and I got a prize! Guess what the prize was! Too late, it was a king size chocolate bar! Oh hey, what are you doing in the kitchen Dashi?" The younger child said at incredible speed, thrusting a Hershey's bar into his older brother's face. Tadashi took a moment to process all the information.

"That's great Hiro. I'm so proud of you and Aunt Cass will be too. Wait till she finds out. This is great news. I'm actually making a cake for her right now. Or at least attempting. Wanna help?" Tadashi asked hopefully. Hiro nodded eagerly, putting his chocolate bar on the counter behind them.

Hiro observed the "mix" that Tadashi prepared. Not wanting to hurt his older brother's feelings, he pondered on how to ask his question. "Uh, Tadashi, how exactly did you make this?" he asked uncertainly. Tadashi scratched his head and listed off ingredients. "Let's see, I added flour, egg, sugar, milk, cinnamon, you know, the essentials. Hiro shook the mix about and tried to figure out what his culinary illiterate brother did wrong.

Tadashi's POV

I could tell Hiro was trying to spare my feelings because he was hesitant to give feedback. If only he knew that I knew I screwed up. "Hey Hiro, don't hold back, I know that it's crap." I say to him, hoping that would help.

"Oh god Tadashi. You didn't mix the wet and dry ingredients together did you?" Hiro asked, horrified. I shrug. "Yeah maybe, why?" I asked, not understanding what he was getting at.

"Gosh Tadashi, you can't bake to save your life." He said, dumping the batter into the trashcan. "Ouch Hiro, just ouch." I say in mock hurt, clenching my heart in despair. Hiro rolls his eyes.

"Okay get me 2 eggs, some flour, sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, milk and a wooden spoon." He says authoritatively. I salute him and run to retrieve the ingredients, but stop myself. "Hey wait, what are _you_ doing?" I asked. He gives me a look. "_I'm_ going to grease the pan, pre-heat the oven, and get some measuring cups." He says. I nod sheepishly and go to get the stuff he needed.

In about 10 minutes, there's 4 cakes done and one batter being mixed. Hiro insisted to make a seven layer cake. He's a stinker for his lucky number sometimes.

I can tell my baby brother is getting exhausted from mixing and I take over for a while. Hiro wipes his forehead and collapses on the floor. I chuckle at his exaggeration. "Hey, thanks for helping me out bone head." I say. He lifts his hand up and waves as a response, too tired to speak.

I hurry and mix the batter, pour it into the pan, shove it into the oven, and begin to work on the next batter.

Hiro eventually gets up to help me again. "Hey Dashi, why are you making Aunt Cass a cake anyways? It's not her birthday or anything." Hiro asks. "Yeah I know, it's just because she takes care of us you know. I feel like people that care for others should be rewarded and repeatedly thanked. In fact, you can't thank them enough." I tell him, hoping this will sink into him.

I know he's young, but he needs to learn these lessons. I hope Aunt Cass knows how appreciative we both are of her. I don't want her to think we take it for granted or anything. To my pleasure, Hiro seems to think about what I said for a while.

"You're right Tadashi. Let's finish this cake!" Hiro says with newfound energy. I smile. I'm glad he's not a bratty kid like most. I hope we stay close like this. Not many siblings are close enough to talk with each other like Hiro and I.

We finally finish and I'm glad we didn't make too much of a mess. I really wasn't in the mood to clean right now. I was borderline wiped out and could see that Hiro was pretty knocked out too. "Alright knucklehead, let's clean up." I say, wiping my hands on my apron.

Hiro just stares at me and I get self-cautious. "What? Is there something on my face?" I ask. He nods and points at my chin with a laugh. I wipe it a bit to see white powder. I groan. Hiro points and laughs. "You look like Santa!" he cries, still laughing. I smirk at him. "You think that's funny do you?" I ask teasingly. Hiro still nods, too oblivious to notice I'm about to get revenge.

I grab a cup of flour and dump it on his mess of black hair. He cries in surprise.

"Ah! Tadashi! I did NOT ask to be Santa!" he says with a huff, crossing his arms. A bunch of flour falls off of his head when he does, making me burst out laughing. He glares at me. He then grabs a handful of chocolate chips and flings them at me. I try to dodge it, but a few end up pelting me anyway. I fix my hat and gaze at Hiro who's in a fighting stance. We mentally tell each other that it's war and grab various ingredients.

I fling a ball of brown sugar at him and it bursts on impact, sugar coating him. "Awwww, Hiro, you're so sweet!" I shout, laughing. He rolls his eyes, tossing an egg at me. It cracks, getting my clothes all gooey. "Lame pun bro." he says.

I throw a glob of leftover cake batter at him. It lands on his face and he gets grossed out. "Ewe! UGH GROSS!" he yells, wiping it off immediately. I laugh at his girlish antics. He shoots me a glare.

I look at the clock. "Oh god! Hiro we gotta clean like right NOW if we wanna finish before Aunt Cass gets home!" I cry in alarm, starting to put the bowls and spoons into the dishwasher. Hiro follows my lead, wiping off the counter tops.

I glance down at the floor and sigh. So much for not making a mess. The floor is littered with flour, eggshells, brown sugar, and other various unidentifiable substances and ingredients. Hiro looks too and is surprised at the mess. "Wow, we did all that?" he asks, gesturing to the mess. I nod and continue staring in disbelief. Hiro disappears and comes back with two mops and brooms.

"Well, it's not gonna clean itself Dashi. Let's get to it." He says, starting to mop. I help him and we finally finish. I check the dishwasher and slap my forehead because my idiotic-self forgot to START it! Hiro sees my predicament.

"Okay Dashi, Aunt Cass will be here in about fifteen minutes. Go shower because your clothes are gross and I'll just clean them by hand." Hiro insists, pushing me away from the kitchen. I look at him in awe. "Hiro, you are the best brother in existence!" I cry, picking him up and spinning him around. He laughs and tells me to put him down if we want to finish before Aunt Cass gets here. I nod and rush upstairs.

When I get back from my shower, Hiro is still cleaning dishes. "Wow Hiro, how long does it take? We didn't make _that_ many dishes dirty did we?" I ask. Hiro shrugs and continues. "Here, your clothes are kind of messed up with all that sugar. You go take a shower." I say, taking over. Hiro shakes his head. "Aunt Cass'll be here any minute. I made some icing, start icing the cake layers. If we hurry, we can ice the entire thing." Hiro says, shoving me away from the dishes.

Wow, my little bro is pretty good at taking charge. I kind of feel like the younger one for once. It's…weird. A good weird. I do as he says and look at the icing he made. He made pink, purple, and red; Aunt Cass's favorites. I'm about to ice it when Hiro's voice stops me. "Wait Dashi, don't ice the cake here. Ice it in the dining hall. On the middle table." He says.

"Why?" I ask.

"Because we'll have to move it eventually, so why not now." He says dismissively.

I guess that makes sense, although not really. It's a weird suggestion, but I listen anyway, taking the heavy seven layer cake into the dining hall.

I finish icing it and Hiro pops out of the kitchen. It took him a long time to clean those dishes in my opinion, but I let it go.

He comes toward me with two tubes of sprinkles, shaking them in my face. "Whatcha say big bro?" he asks goofily. I nod and we bombard the cake with rainbow flavored sprinkles.

I stand back to stare at our master piece. It's no food network cake boss winner, but it's not something that you wouldn't want to eat either. "I'll give it a 7/10." I say. Hiro thinks for a moment. "I'd give it an eight. We just could've put the sprinkles on in a better way." Hiro says.

Suddenly, Aunt Cass walks in, looking beat. "Oh kiddos, I'm so put out. Let's just order take out tonight beca- WHAT is THAT?!" she cries in alarm, pointing to our cake, dropping her grocery bags in the process.

"We made you a cake!" we shout at the same time, sharing a glance. Aunt Cass looks beyond thrilled. "Oh you boys are so sweet! Thank you!" she says, crushing us in a hug. She dives into the cake, urging us to join her. I'm about to, when Hiro grabs my arm, stopping me. I look at him expectantly. "C'mon, follow me." He says, dragging me to the kitchen.

"What are we doing here?" I ask, confused. Hiro ignores my question and goes to the fridge and pulls out a blue and yellow iced two layer cake coated in a Hershey's bars little rectangles. I stare at in wonder.

Hiro shyly meets my gaze. "You said to remember to thank the people that take care of you. While it's true that Aunt Cass takes care of us, I think you take care of me in ways no one else ever did or will. Even mom and dad, so uh…you know…I uh…" he trails off, placing the cake on the counter.

I smile at him teasingly. "Aw, that's so cute Hiro, are you admitting you CARE about me? And almost saying THANK YOU?" I ask. Hiro punches me in the arm, blushing. "Yeah yeah, get cocky all you want." He says. I laugh and tackle him in a hug. "Thanks bro. at least now I know why it took forever for you to clean those dishes." I say.

I stare at the cake. This one definitely gets a 10/10. It gorgeous and the Hershey's pieces are a sweet edition to it. Wait a minute, Hershey's pieces?!

"Hiro, you didn't use your chocolate from school for this did you?!" I ask in shock. Hiro nods shyly. "You said you can't thank those people enough, so I thought using that would make it somewhat enough." He says bashfully. "Unbelievable." I breathe. I come down to Hiro's eye level. He looks away from me, embarrassed.

"Hey, look at me knuckle head." He looks at me. "You're way more than enough. You're the best brother a guy could have." I say honestly. Hiro blushes like crazy. "Th-th-thanks Tadashi." He says. I smile at him.

I suddenly take my hat off since something was bothering me in there and a bunch of chocolate chips come out of it, breaking our 'moment' and causing us to laugh. "God Hiro, how many of these did you get me with?" I ask, nudging him in the side. He shrugs, picking one out of my hair and eating it. "Gross Hiro." I say mockingly. He punches me in the shoulder playfully.

"Hey kiddos, I did bring you guys something. Come see." Aunt Cass called, her mouth sounding full. We head into the dining hall and she hands us a smallish white paper bag.

"Donut balls!" Hiro breathes in excitement, shoving his hand into the bag. He bites into it eagerly and moans in delight. "Delicious! You're the best Aunt Cass!" he exclaims. I cross my arms. "Oh what, she buys you donut balls and suddenly I'm second best?" I ask accusingly. Hiro's cheeks turn a fresh red. "I-uh,-Dashi!" he sputters incoherently. "Relax Hiro, I was only messing with you." I say, giving him a noogie. He pulled away from my grasp and glared. I smiled sweetly in return, taking a donut ball for myself.

"Mm, it's good but it's missing something. It's a little plain." I muse. Hiro looks at me in confusion. "What are you talking about? It's perfect." He says. "Not quite." I say with a smirk.

I rub the donut ball across Hiro's brown sugar covered face and eat it. Hiro looks disgusted but I laugh. "Now it's perfect." I say. Hiro tries not to, but ends up laughing too. "Tadashi that was gross!" he cries, laughing so hard, he has to hold his stomach in pain. I shrug. "Says the one who picked a chocolate chip outta my hair." I say mockingly. He looks away, embarrassed.

"Hey bonehead, whaddya ya say we head into the kitchen and dive into that beyond delicious looking cake?" I ask. Hiro doesn't even wait for me to finish that sentence before rushing into the kitchen. "Unbelievable." I snort.

Aunt Cass comes up behind me and puts a hand on my shoulder. "You know, he may not admit it, but he really loves you Tadashi." She said. "Nah, I can get him to admit it sometimes." I say to her. She smiles and goes back to her cake. She already finished an entire layer. I give her a look.

She waves a piece of cake at me. "Joy eating." She defends, stuffing her face with a pink iced slice. I ignore it and head into the kitchen to eat the cake my baby bro made.

SHA-ZAM! Another chapter DONE!


	9. Chapter 9

Brothers

9

Ages

Hiro: 13

Tadashi: 18

Okay, so this is gonna be a multiple chapter story. Maybe a trilogy at most, though I'm not 100% sure yet. It's just a bit too much content to fit in one chapter. Enjoy

Youngest or Oldest?

Part 1: The Switch

Hiro's POV

I was just finishing breakfast when I heard Tadashi's footsteps coming down from our room. When he got to the dining hall, I greeted him, but he didn't exactly look thrilled to see me. Confusion waves went over me. What could I possibly have done? I only just woke about ten minutes ago after all.

"Uh, you alright there Tadashi? I ask carefully. Tadashi does not look amused.

"How many times have I told you not to leave a mess in our room?" he asks, getting right to business. I take a bite of my donut and shrug.

"As many times as I've done it?" I respond smartly, just to tick him off.

"Hiro please. It's not just your room. I like things clean. Stop scattering everything."

"Exactly, it's not just your room either. I like things messy." I say jokingly.

"Hiro, I'm not in the mood for games. Clean it up now."

"I'm kind of eating breakfast right now as you can probably see."

"Hiro, I don't need any of your lip. Clean that room as soon as you're done eating."

"Oooooh, as much as I'd love to big bro, but I've kinda got plans." I say, finishing my donut and running to the door. Before I can make it out, Tadashi grabs me by the hoodie and spins me around, something I hate almost as much as when he messes up my hair. "Hiro, Clean. NOW." He says authoritatively. I roll my eyes. "It's not even on your side of the room bro. quit being such a neat freak." I say, shoving him away from me.

"Hiro c'mon. I always do things for you." He says. I raise an eyebrow. "Like what? Name _one _time." I challenge. Tadashi fold his arms. "Okay, I cared for you when you were sick. I took the blame for you when you broke Aunt Cass's expensive vase. I read you bedtime stories when you were younger. I checked the closet for monsters that one time. I also convinced Aunt Cass to keep Mochi when you found her as a stray kitten on the streets." He says.

"Yeesh, I only asked for one." I say, heading upstairs to clean our room.

"Ah, THANK YOU Hiro." Tadashi says, relieved.

That's the thing about mine and Tadashi's arguments. They usually last no longer than a minute and they get resolved pretty quickly.

I just finished cleaning out room and head downstairs. I hear Tadashi talking to someone, probably a friend from school. Deciding to eavesdrop like the good little boy I am, I hide behind the staircase.

"Hm? Yeah totally. I know right. Yeah. Being the oldest sibling stinks sometimes. Really? No way! Hiro's done way worse." I hear Tadashi say to the other line. I cross my arms.

Yeah, cause being a bossy, annoying, and over protective brother is SO hard. Psh, what a baby. None the less, I continue to listen.

"He has no idea. Yeah, it's like he just expects it and gets mad when things don't go his way. Yeah? Totally. Yeah, I remember one time in third grade, Hiro lost his science project and when I found it, he didn't even acknowledge me. Yup, just took off for school like he expected me to find it." I heard him say.

I shake my head in disbelief. Is he really holding something I did when I was EIGHT against me? How mature.

"Oh and he gets like whatever he wants just by making his stupid little puppy face. It's not even that cute. Like he wanted these cookies right? But Aunt Cass said to wait till after diner. But get this, he gives her that ridiculous face and BAM! He gets cookies before dinner. I could never get away with stuff like that." He continues.

So he thinks being the youngest is easy does he? It's not like I always get compared to him and people expect great things from me just because I'm his brother. It's not like I have to try extra hard to be where he is. Okay, so maybe I over achieved a bit, but my point still stands.

I suddenly get the perfect idea and run back upstairs.

"Hiro! I thought I asked you to clean up, not make a bigger mess!" Tadashi cries, looking at the mess I sort of made again.

"Okay wait, I know this looks really bad, but I promise I cleaned it! I just…made another mess. But this one is totally unrelated to the one from this morning." I say lamely. He shakes his head. "What are you even doing anyway?" he asks, curious. I shrug mysteriously. "For me to work on and you to find out. Eventually." I say, getting back to my project.

Tadashi collapses on his bed and starts reading. I smirk and run to him, grab his hat off of his head, and run back before he can process what just happened.

He blinks and touched his head. "What the- Hiro!" he yells. I smile sweetly at him and search the hat for any loose hairs. Finding one, I snag it and hide it behind me before he can see. Tadashi comes at me and snatches his hat back. "Crazy little kid." He mutters, though I know he's amused.

"So Hiro honey, Tadashi tells me that you're working on something new?" Aunt asks, interested. I glare at Tadashi. He know I hate it when people know I'm working on something. He just smirks at me, grabbing more mashed potatoes on his plate. I glance at my untouched dinner and shrug. "Yeah, but it's just a work in progress so you know." I say plainly.

"You okay Hiro, you haven't touched your dinner at all." Aunt Cass asks. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just really wanna work on this project, so if you'll excuse me." I say, rushing upstairs.

"Alright little bro, you've been working on that thing for two weeks now, what is it?" Tadashi asks me, finally interested.

"Well, now that I'm finally finished, I guess it's time for you to know." I say, wiping my forehead.

"First, a hair from each of the test subjects." I say, pulling out two hairs. Tadashi observes the hair. "Wait a second, is that MY hair?!" he asks, shocked. I nod and place the hairs in my machine.  
>"Whoa whoa, way Whoa whoa. What exactly does this thing do?" he asks in caution.<p>

"Chillax big bro. so remember how a couple of weeks ago you were on the phone and were talking about how it sucks to be the older sibling?" I ask accusingly. Tadashi looks guilty and nervously adjusts his hat. "Hiro, I didn't mean it. I was just talking you know. I don't really mind being your older brother." He says. I wave it off.

"Don't worry about that, that's only one of the reasons I decided to build this. See, this machine allows us to switch ages. That way, I can see how 'terrible' it is to be the older one." I say, satisfied. Tadashi looks less enthusiastic than I hoped.

"I don't know Hiro. I mean, so many things can go wrong with this." He says uncertainly.

"Alright, I'll just tell Aunt Cass who _really _got in trouble at school for blowing up the chemistry lab." I threaten nonchalantly. His eyes widen.

"Oh fine. Whatever. It's not like this is going to be terrible. I can get away with everything now." He says.

Yeah you think that it's all fun and games being the youngest. Psh, this is my best idea yet.

I fire up the machine and wait for it to work its magic. A bright flash blocks my view and I can't see anything for a second. I open my eyes and look around for Tadashi, looking forward to being taller and less lanky.

Well, one thing's for sure. I'm definitely taller. But something feels a little weird. I can't place it.

I finally let my eyes fall on Hiro. Wait, HIRO?! I'm Hiro! What in the world."

_I _apparently get up and rub _my_ eyes? "Wow Hiro. That was definitely something." I say. My brain really hurts and I can't comprehend anything.

"WOW WAIT WHAT THE HECK?! HOW CAN YOU BE ME WHEN I'M ME?!" I scream. I rub my head and look in the mirror. It takes me a while to process what happened, but I finally piece it together.

"Tadashi. Something did go wrong. We didn't switch ages. We switched BODIES!" I scream in horror. Tadashi in my body laughs. "Ha, good one Hiro, what really happened?" he asks. I shove a mirror into his hands. His eyes practically pop out of his sockets.

"Oh. My. GOD." He says in shock and horror. "I'm in your body. I'm in my little brother's body. Those are words that shouldn't come out of anyone's mouth." Tadashi says.

I look around nervously before gazing at my body from someone else's eyes for the first time. Man my hair is all over the place. I'm a pretty pathetic looking kid overall. I can't believe this is real. I can see that Tadashi is looking at me too and checking 'himself' out.

Tadashi's POV

Holy cow. I can't believe that I'm looking at myself. God, that sounds weird. I'm pretty tall, or maybe that's just because Hiro's pretty short.

I'm trying to decide what to do or say when Hiro speaks up.

"So…maybe the machine didn't do _exactly_ what it was supposed to, but maybe this will be easier to explain to Aunt Cass. I mean, I'm just looking on the bright side here." He says.

"Unbelievable. How could this possible be _easier_ to explain?! Oh, hey Aunt Cass. I'm trapped in Hiro's body and Hiro's trapped in mine. Yeah, that'll be a pleasant little talk!" I shout, terrified. Hiro rolls his eyes.

"Calm down big bro. use your brain for a second. We don't have to tell her anything because she won't know. You see what I'm getting at?" he asks. "You mean, just pretend that everything's normal?" I ask. Hiro nods. "Precisely."

"I don't understand why we can't just use your machine to switch back bodies." I say. Hiro looks at me as if it's obvious.

"Because we still didn't experience what it's like to be each other's age. Or each other for that matter." Hiro jokes. I sigh. "Okay. But only for a while. Got it?" I say. He nods. "One day. Two days tops." He promises. I nod too. "Alright, well, let's go eat breakfast." I say, heading downstairs.

Aunt Cass greets us with a big smile as always. "Alright kiddos, I made your favorites. Blueberry pancakes for Hiro and chocolate chip pancakes for Tadashi." She says, plating the yummy breakfast in front of us.

Hiro and I look at each other. I hate blueberries. But I'm Hiro, so apparently I love them. I take a hesitant bite and want to spit it out.

"Okay smart one, we may have switched bodies, but I think our brains stayed. Which would also explain why I don't feel like a super genius." I whisper to Hiro. Hiro smiles a chocolate tooth covered smile at me. It's strange since I'm so used to seeing a slight teeth gapped one. "Too bad I like chocolate chips _and_ blueberries huh?" he says teasingly. Leave it to Hiro to remain childish, even while in _my_ body.

We finish breakfast and head to the park because we've got nothing better to do. While we're on the swings, I see a couple of my friends and I'm about to call to them, before Hiro stops me.

"Are you crazy?!" he asks me.

"What do you mean?"

"I MEAN genius. How do you think they'll react when they see ME waving to them? I'm you, remember?" he says.

Oh right. I just look at the floor. "This is going to take some getting used to." I say. Hiro grabs my shoulder softly. "Hey, it's okay. Maybe we just need to practice. We should just hang around Aunt Cass. If we can fool her, we can adjust way easier in public." Hiro suggests. I nod and we head home silently.

It's when we're walking home that I realize something important. Maybe some parts of our brain switched, but some stayed the same. When Hiro was comforting me a second ago, it was almost like my older brother instincts took over him. In fact, that's probably exactly what happened. Maybe we really can experience what it's like to be the opposite age.

I tell Hiro what I just figured out. He smiles. "I knew my invention would work. I shake my head. "Hopefully, this switching bodies thing will teach you a lesson or two." I say, nudging him in the side. "And maybe teach you three or four." He says goofily, nudging me back.

"Okay mister always has a comeback." I say nudging him slightly harder.

He laughs and nudges me twice as hard. Apparently Hiro didn't know his new strength and I didn't know my lack of and so I went falling down on the sidewalk.

Normal POV

"Ouch!" Tadashi cries. Hiro kneels down to help. "Oh god Tadashi. I'm so sorry. I didn't know." He says apologetically, picking Tadashi up. "It's cool. I just lightly scraped my arm is all." he says whilst inspecting it. "No, c'mon let's get it disinfected." Hiro insists, pulling Tadashi into the café behind him.

'Gosh, way to overreact over a little scratch.' Tadashi thought.

'Wow, did he have to be so clumsy. And on top of that, if we don't disinfect it, it'll hurt worse.' Hiro thought at the same time.

Little did both brothers know that their brains were adjusting to their bodies more by the minute. Hiro was getting really over protective and Tadashi was beginning to want to do more interesting things.

Well, that's the end of part 1. Any guesses on how this will turn out? Let me know what you think! I'm all ears. Till next time!

-girl you wouldn't expect


	10. Chapter 10

Brothers

10

Ages: 13

Tadashi: 18

Youngest or Oldest?

Part 2: Seeing What Really Counts

Normal POV

Tadashi and Hiro entered the lucky cat café and once Tadashi got bandaged up (after Hiro insisted greatly) they decided to help their Aunt Cass. They both figured this would be the easiest way to try and adjust to their new selves.

"So Aunt Cass, what do need us to do?" Hiro asks. "Well you can either do the dishes or take orders for Me." she responds. Tadashi pipes up. "What about me Aunt Cass?" he asks. "Oh little Hiro, you can just go upstairs and relax. My little high-schooler probably needs to catch up on his homework." She says, pinching his cheek. Hiro looks at his older brother who's conveniently trapped in his body, in disbelief. Tadashi smirks. "Yeah, thanks Aunt Cass. I should probably study for a bit." Tadashi says, running up the stairs.

Hiro's POV

How unfair. I guess that's one good thing about being the younger one, but I bet it's still crazy awesome to be the oldest. This is just a minor setback. Psh, Tadashi can have his little victory if he wants, I'm still the older one. That means he's gotta listen to me. This is gonna be fun.

After I FINALLY finished my shift in the café, I rushed upstairs to our shared room and see Tadashi working on his homework like the golden boy he is. The only difference was, he made a mess. Papers all over the floor, pencil shavings here and there. Even Tadashi himself was messy looking, well given that he _was_ in my body. I never noticed how messy my hair looks.

I walk over to Tadashi and almost as if I'm in some sort of hypnotic trance, I reach over and muss the hair up a bit, finding joy in doing it. "Gah, Hiro, quit it." Tadashi says, moving away from me. I blink in surprise.

Wow. Now I know why Tadashi's always messing with my hair. That was kind of fun. Weird.

I then smirk. It's time to test out my new power. "Tadashi, clean this room right now." I demand, crossing my arms. Tadashi smirks back and I get a bit confused.

"No." he says plainly.

"I mean it Tadashi."

So do I Hiro." He says mockingly.

I glare at him. "Tadashi clean this room right now." I command.

"Make me."

"I'm your older brother. You have to do what I say."

"Great reason Hiro. You should be a lawyer." Tadashi says sarcastically.

"Unbelievable." I say.

"Yeah. Well, it's been a barrel of monkeys little, or should I say BIG bro, but I've got places to be and people to see, so buh-bye." Tadashi starts, getting ready to leave the house.

That does it. I've had enough of his incessant back talk and sarcasm. I yank him by the hoodie and make him look at me. "Listen here LITTLE brother." Snarl. "You're going to clean this room and you're not going anywhere till it's spotless. If you still want to be a smart ass about it, then I'll just see what Aunt Cass has to say." I say victoriously.

To my dismay, Tadashi gives me a hurt look. "Wow Hiro, I never thought you'd be this terrible of an older brother. I never threatened to tell Aunt Cass on you like that. What a jerk. I hope you're happy, because I'm certainly not." He says, starting to clean the room, though clearly not happy about it.

Well that felt awful. I thought this was gonna be fun. Wait a minute! Tadashi's such a little rat. I remember using that same guilt trip trick on him weeks ago. It's supposed to make me feel like a jerk. Too bad it's working though. Maybe I should make it up to him somehow. I suddenly got an idea and went downstairs to put it in motion.

I grab the car keys to Tadashi's moped and start to go upstairs before Aunt Cass stops me.

"Hold on there mister. Where exactly do you think you're going? Especially with those keys?" she questions. I gulp. "Oh, I just thought I'd take Tadashi to get some ice cream you know. Sibling bonding and whatnot." I say casually. Aunt Cass raises an eyebrow and I realize my mistake too late.

"Tadashi? Did you just say you'll take Tadashi to get some ice cream?" she asks. I try to play it off. "Psh, you know I meant Hiro Aunt Cass. Just a slip of the tongue. That's all." I say coolly before heading upstairs at lightning speed. When I get there, the room is actually spotless. "Wow Hiro, you did a pretty good job." I say. Tadashi wrinkles his nose. "Bro, did you just call me Hiro?" he asks.

I slap my forehead. "Yeah, whatever. Listen, heads up, don't call me Hiro in front of Aunt Cass. Remember we're each other. We can still call each other by our names, but we have to get used to calling each other the opposite name in public. Tadashi nods.

"So where are you headed anyway? Not anywhere in my moped I hope." Tadashi says, eyeing his moped's keys. "I thought maybe we could go for some ice cream. You know, to patch up and stuff." I say lamely. He raises an eyebrow and shrugs. "Sure whatever. But the fact remains that you don't know how to drive." He points out. I shrug. "I'll learn." I say nonchalantly, heading downstairs.

"Okay boys, just don't be out too late okay?" Aunt Cass calls. "Yeah okay, I'll make sure Tadashi doesn't keep me out too long." Tadashi says.

I smile at him. Nice job. He didn't even hesitate to say his own name like that. We just might pull this off.

"Alright, helmets first of course." I say, handing one to Tadashi. He straps it on. "What next genius?" He questions me. I glare at him. "Gimmie a second will ya?" I say, trying to figure out how to work the moped.

I finally get it and learn pretty fast with Tadashi there to guide me. We stop at the sweet spot, our favorite dessert place in existence. "After you." I say, opening the door for Tadashi.

He rushes in, excited and I can't help but smile. I wonder how long it's been since Tadashi truly got to act like a kid. I bet it's been since mom and dad died. I feel bad for him. Life forced Tadashi to grow up faster than he could keep up or even wanted to. He has to act like a father and brother to me.

Suddenly, this machine isn't about proving that being older is better. Maybe it never was. Maybe fate made me build this machine so I could give Tadashi a taste of being a kid because I can't deny that I like it. That's exactly what I intend to do now. No more clichés like we both end up realizing how great it is to be just the way we are. No way. This is about giving Tadashi a break for once. For once, he won't have any worries. For once, I'll take care of him. Anything he wants, he'll get. For once, Tadashi's going to get a taste of just being a kid.

We make our way to the register and Mr. Yuki greets us with a smile. "Ah, the Hamada brothers. I've been wondering when you two would show up again. It's been almost three weeks since you've last visited. The usual?" he asks nicely. Tadashi and I nod eagerly.

I see him prepare a beautiful strawberry cone with extra gummy bears, just the way I like it and I get excited, until I remember that I'm Tadashi. That means he's getting my beloved gummies. Then a thought strikes me. This means that I'm getting what Tadashi usually gets, which means….

"Here you go Tadashi, vanilla with snicker bars." Mr. Yuki says, handing me the cone with the large snicker bar pieces in it. I eyeball the ice cream carefully. I quickly pay for the ice cream and Tadashi and I head outside to eat our ice cream. Tadashi hasn't touched his and we both know why.

I'm allergic to peanuts. I can't eat this and Tadashi knows. "Here, let's trade." He suggests with a smile. I nod and we trade. He bites into his favorite dessert, but something's wrong. Tadashi's getting a really red rash as he eats it. "Tadashi! Quit eating the ice cream!" I cry, snatching it away from him. He gives me a puzzled look. "Why Hiro?" he questions. "You're getting a rash." I say, fumbling around my pockets until I feel the epi-pen Tadashi usually carries with him in case of moments like these. I press it to Tadashi's arm and wait.

The rash dies down and I sigh in relief. "God Tadashi, you scared me. No more peanuts for you. Are you alright? Hurt in anyway? Should I call Aunt Cass? Or maybe take you to a doctor?" I ask worriedly.

"Whoa Hiro, chillax. It's a mild allergy remember? I'll be fine. It doesn't even hurt. I actually didn't even notice. Though I do a bit now, but I'm fine, I promise. Quit being such a mother hen." He says. I nod. "right." I say.

"But. There's one thing I don't understand. How come I'm the one that can't eat peanuts?" he asks. I think for a moment. "Well, I guess it's like you said, our brains are being transferred slowly I guess. So I guess that means _I _can eat peanuts." I suggest. "Yeah, I guess that makes sense." He says thoughtfully.

"Go ahead. Try it. I know you're curious." Tadashi urges. He's right. I am pretty curious to know what peanuts taste like. Everyone's always talking about how amazing Recess and Snickers are. I just have to try it. I take a generous bit of the ice cream and let the chocolate melt into my mouth. When I bite down to chew it, it's like my taste buds are on a journey. The chocolate combined with the nuttiness send my brain into overdrive and make it go crazy. It's so wonderful, it's indescribable. I can't believe I've been missing this all my life. "MMMM." I breathe in bliss. Tadashi laughs at me.

"Hey, can we hit the candy store? For some reason, I'm craving more gummy bears." Tadashi asks, his ice cream all gone since we switched back. I nod, still enjoying the unreal feeling of a Snickers bar.

We go to the candy store right around the block and my eyes widen in happiness as I see all the choices of candy that were usually forbidden to me. I tell Tadashi to meet me at the register in ten minutes and then head off into the deliciousness.

I get so many candies, I have to actually get a basket to put it all in. I look at all the stuff I got. Snickers, Recess, almond joy, bounty, almond Hershey's, Mr. Good bar, all the way to simpler things like just plain old chocolate covered peanuts.

I finally finish and head to the register where Tadashi's waiting with two jump size bags of gummy bears. He eyes my basket and raises an eyebrow. "Sweet tooth much?" he asks teasingly. I wave him off. "Oh hush, I really want to try everything that I've been missing. Don't judge." I say, paying for our candy which totaled to 35$ due to all the candy that I bought. "Unbelievable." Tadashi says in awe as I down two chocolate bars right in front of him.

"Oh boys! I made spaghetti and meatballs!" Aunt Cass said merrily. Tadashi and I shared a look. "We're really sorry Aunt Cass, but I think we ate too much while we were out." I say sadly. Tadashi shoots me a warning look and I'm confused as to why until Aunt Cass gives me a disapproving look.

Aunt Cass looks really disappointed. "Tadashi, I expected you to be more responsible than this. I'll overlook it this once since you're usually so responsible, but don't let it happen again. It took me a long time to prepare this meal." She says, dismissing us.

"Nice going bonehead. Never and I mean NEVER tell Aunt Cass that you're full when she's already prepared dinner. Even though we're full, we should've eaten just a little bit to show her we appreciated it." He says. I look down. "Sorry, still getting used to being the passionate one here." I say softly.

Tadashi sighs. "I don't blame you. I got it easier being the younger one here. Way less responsibilities. I guess I'm so used to being the sensible one, I've forgotten what it's like to be a kid again, you know?" he says.

"I do Dashi. I do. That's why I decided to keep this going as long as you want. I'm actually just doing this for you now. I figured how much you must miss being little again and thought you were enjoying this." I admit. Tadashi looks at me with an expression I can't place. I see gratefulness in it though.

"Hiro. That's the nicest thing anyone's ever done for me. Thank you. I never realized how much I actually was enjoying this. You're a fantastic older brother. I take back what I said this morning." Tadashi says. I smile and nudge him on the side. "You're not a terrible younger bro yourself Nii San." I say. We smile at each other and I know that I'm beyond lucky to have a brother like Tadashi.

Eventually Tadashi and I switched bodies back without Aunt Cass ever realizing anything suspicious was going on. I missed eating chocolate with peanuts, but every once in a while, Tadashi and I would switch for kicks. I'd eat chocolate and Tadashi would do something incredibly stupid and childish. It always brought a smile to my face. I was happy knowing that something I did made Tadashi so happy and carefree. I also understand why he always hovers over me like mother hen now.

The feeling you get when someone you love is in pain or danger is greater than anything in the world and we're all we've got left. We stick together. Youngest, oldest, doesn't matter. What matters is that we're always there for each other and we always will be.


	11. Chapter 11

Brothers

11

Ages

Hiro: 4

Tadashi: 12

Tadashi's POV

We were having enchiladas for dinner, one of my favorites. Hiro wouldn't touch his food though and Aunt Cass noticed as well as I did.

"Hiro honey, are you alright? You haven't touched your food at all." Aunt Cass asks. Hiro looks upset, but Aunt Cass doesn't press the issue.

It had only been a week or two since we moved in with her and Hiro was still pretty traumatized about the whole no more parent's thing. The only person he felt comfortable around nowadays was me.

"Well, thanks for a great dinner Aunt Cass, but I think Hiro and I are just about ready to hit the sack, right bro?" I ask him. Hiro cocks his head to the side. "What sack? Why are we gonna hit it?" he asks, confused. Aunt Cass giggles at his comment, making Hiro blush in embarrassment and hide behind me. I smile at him. "Not a literal sack bro, I mean let's get to bed." I explain. Hiro's mouth makes an 'oh' shape and he nods sheepishly.

"Night Aunt Cass." I say, nudging Hiro, hinting that he do the same. "Night." He says almost inaudibly. Aunt Cass hugs me goodnight and pats Hiro on the head before heading to bed herself.

"C'mon Hiro, let's go to our room." I say. Hiro doesn't move. "C'mon Hiro." I say. He doesn't budge. "Up Dashi." He demands adorably, putting his hands in the air. I chuckle and pick him up. "Wow Hiro, you're getting heavy." I joke. He punches me in the chest lightly. "Nuh UH!" he says, pouting. I just smile and carry him up.

When we get to our room, I throw Hiro onto his bed and he shrieks in surprise. Then I turn to go to my bed, but Hiro's one sneaky kid because by the time I turn around to get to my bed, he's in front of me. "Wow, what's up Hiro?" I ask, kneeling down to his eyelevel. He just blinks, hiding what he wants to tell me.

He's been awfully quiet lately and it worries me. "yOu wanna sleep with me tonight?" I ask. He remains silent. I don't know what he wants so I shrug and go to bed. No more than two minutes later, I feel tugging at the sheets. Sighing, I lean down to face Hiro. "What's wrong Hiro? Something bothering you?" I ask. He nods shyly, sticking his thumb into his mouth in nervousness. "What is it?" I press. He ushers for me to lean down closer and I do. "There's a monster in here Dashi." He whispers secretly, as if the monster might hear.

"Hiro, don't worry. There's no monster in here. Go to sleep." I say. Hiro retreats to his bed, though unhappily. A few minutes later, he's back at my bed. "Dashi. It's still there!" he whispers, frightened. I see that reassuring him isn't going to help, so I go to plan B.

"Alright Hiro, where's the monster?" I ask, playing along. Hiro looks relieved that I believe him and grabs my hand, taking me to his bed. "He's under there." He says seriously. I decided to keep this going on. I sneak a peek under his bed and come back up, looking shocked.

"Oh my gosh Hiro, you were right! There IS a monster in there." I say in fake fear. Hiro's eyes widen in alarm. "What're we gonna do Dashi?" he asks anxiously. We have to get rid of it!" I say as it were obvious. Hiro nods and waits for me to continue. "So, what are monsters scared of?" I ask him. Hiro thinks for a moment. "Hmm, they're scared of peanuts! And also perfume." Hiro says in a dead serious tone.

It doesn't take a genius to figure out that Hiro's listing things that he hates. Peanuts because of his allergies and perfume because of…well, that's a story for another time.

I nod in agreement. "Alright, well let's go get some peanuts and perfume." I say. Hiro nods eagerly and drags me downstairs with delicate tiptoes. "Okay, you get the perfume from the bathroom and I'll grab some bags of peanuts." I say, heading to the pantry. We meet back by the stairs and then head up.

"Now what?" Hiro asks curiously. "Now, we shove the peanut packets under your bed along with a few sprays of perfume and then he'll go away." I say. "Oh, that's right." Hiro says, as if what I just said is perfectly logical. We proceed to the plan and wait.

God, I'm so tired right now.

"What if it didn't work Dashi? I mean, this is a tough monster. Maybe the peanuts and perfume just isn't enough?" Hiro asks, scared. I brace him reassuringly. "Don't worry Hiro, I won't go to sleep till this monster is gone for good, okay?" I tell him. Hiro nods and clings onto me. "Bad monster." I hear him mumble. I want to laugh, but I don't want to risk Hiro crying for me making fun of him so I keep quiet.

"Dashi, check. Check if it worked. I don't think it worked. I still hear him under there." Hiro says, letting me go. I check under the bed and gasp in mock horror. "What is it Dashi?!" Hiro asks. I cover my mouth with my hands. "Oh no Hiro, he's still there. And he's getting angry. Hurry, we have to work fast." I say, picking him up and taking him downstairs.

Hiro holds on to me tight and doesn't let go. "Dashi. Make it go away." He begs me. I hug him tight back. "Don't worry Hiro, I'll make sure he stays away. He doesn't look 100% sure, but he still listens to what I have to say.

"Okay, I read somewhere that if you eat something sweet, the fumes from your mouth will make the monster go away." I say, grabbing some cookies off of the counter and handing one to Hiro. "Fumes?" Hiro questions. "Yeah, the smell." I explain. "Oh." He says, biting into the cookie gleefully. We finishes and head back upstairs.

When we get there, Hiro starts breathing heavily. "Dashi, c'mon. Breathe a lot so the monster smells the sweetness." Hiro says. "Oh, of course." I say, breathing heavily alongside my baby bro. "Check if he's still there Dashi!" Hiro urges. I do as he says and come back up with a faux sad face. "Sorry Hiro, he's still there." I say dejectedly.

Hiro's eyes well up with frightened tears. "Dashi, make it leave me alone. It's mean and scary. Make it leave forever! He's scaring me! Please Dashi!" he begs, burying his head into me, tears decorating his face. I decide to wrap this up for three reasons. One, I REALLY wanted some sleep. Two, I can't seeing Hiro cry. Three, this monster was getting on my last nerve. Anything that scares Hiro needs to be taught a lesson.

I need to remind myself that I'm trying to get rid of a fake monster for a second before continuing this crazy night endeavor.

"Alright Hiro, don't worry. I always keep my promises don't I? This monster is as good as gone. This last idea is full proof." I assure him. Hiro sniffles and looks up at me with hopeful eyes. "Okay Dashi, whatever you say." He says, putting his faith in me.

We head downstairs once again, but this time I tell him to wait by the staircase. "Alone?" he asks sadly. I reluctantly nod and tell him I won't be long. He stays reluctantly and puts his head down. I hurry up and do what I have to and come back about five minutes later.

Hiro notices my presence and hugs me. "Dashi, you were gone forever. Don't leave me alone next time when there's a monster ever again, okay?" he commands. I nod and chuckle. "What's behind your back Dashi?" he asks. I pull out the spray bottle I got and show it to him. "What's that?" Hiro asks with a wrinkled nose. "Monster repellent." I reply, opening the door to our room. Hiro widens his eyes in happiness. "Where'd you get it from?" he asks me in bewilderment. "Secret." I respond.

I take the spray bottle and squirt a good amount under Hiro's bed. "There we go." I say satisfied. "Is it really gone?" Hiro asks carefully. "Lemme check one more time just to make sure." I say cautiously, checking under the bed. "Well?" Hiro asks anxiously. I give him a thumbs up.

"We scared him off knuckle head. He's definitely hightailed his way outta here for good. And if he ever shows his ugly face here again, you spray this on him and he'll go away." I say, handing Hiro the 'monster' repellant. Hiro grins widely, showing his teeth gap. "Thanks, you're the best brother ever!" Hiro exclaims, clinging onto me once more. I blush a bit and ruffle his hair. "You're not so bad yourself bone head." I say back. He laughs and jumps into bed.

"Hey Dashi, you can sleep with me tonight if you want. You know, in case you're scared that there's a monster under your bed or something." He says to me as if he's doing me a huge favor. I chuckle and get into his bed with him. "Thanks lil bro. I think I'll take you up on that offer." I whisper, drifting off. I feel Hiro lay down on top of me, but I'm too tired to tell him to get off, so I allow it.

"Night Dashi." He whispers softly, tickling my arm with his breath.


	12. Chapter 12

Brothers

12

Ages

Hiro: 4

Tadashi: 13

Normal POV

"You excited Hiro?" Mrs. Hamada asked. Hiro nodded eagerly. "Yup mommy. We're gonna go see Dashi right?" he asked. Hiro's mom nodded. "Thar's right Hiro. We're going to go surprise Tadashi for making it through his first day of high school!" His mother said.

"Honey, slow down the car will you? You're going a bit fast." Mrs. Hamada said to Mr. Hamada. Hiro's father didn't respond to his wife's request and kept on going. Mrs. Hamada was getting worried.

Mr. Hamada hurriedly whispered something into Mrs. Hamada's ear and her face grew pale. She nodded and moved into the back seat with Hiro, though with clear difficulty. "Mommy?" Hiro asks, confused as to why his mother came into the back with him. "Hush Hiro. I just want to sit in the back with you is all." His mother said softly, hugging her son close to her. "Mmph, Mama! You're squishing me." Hiro complained.

His mom hushed Hiro again. She placed Hiro in her lap and started telling him stories of when she was younger. Hiro didn't mind, but it was puzzling him. Why now? It was weird to the little four year old. Suddenly, the car was moving at an intense speed and Hiro was getting slightly afraid. "Daddy, slow down." He whined. Mrs. Hamada hugged Hiro even closer to her.

Then, before Hiro could comprehend what was happening, the car swerved and toppled over and over again, making him dizzy. "MOMMY!" he cried in fright. His mother had concealed the small boy into her body and he remained perfectly intact. Hiro finally thought it was over and was happy that they were right side up again, but fate had other plans for them. A shiny red car came crashing toward him and Hiro got a glimpse of it right as it made contact with their car, toppling them over the side, into the water below them. Hiro shrieked in fear and closed his eyes, hoping someone would save them before they fell.

Too late. The car went sinking down, causing Mr. and Mrs. Hamada to yell at each other about what to do. They both agreed on doing everything in their power to save Hiro, so Mrs. Hamada let him out of her grasp. "Hiro, listen carefully. Daddy is going to open the window now. As soon as you can fit, swim through it and get to the top, okay? Do you understand me?" she asks anxiously. Hiro unknowingly was crying, but nodded. "Alright, but what about you and daddy?" he asks.

Mrs. Hamada smiled sadly. "We're right behind you Hiro. We'll always be with you. Even if you can't see us." She said. Unbeknownst to Hiro, her words held a double meaning. Hiro nodded and braced himself to swim out. Before his dad could open the window, water started filling the car faster than they could react. When it was up to Hiro's waist, his parents were in full blown tears. They knew there was no more hope. Hiro, though only four, figured it too. The fact that his parents were crying was enough for him to realize that something was terribly wrong. He was bawling at his point, and his head was now getting covered in water, blocking off his breathing. Mr. and Mrs. Hamada could do nothing more at this point.

Mrs. Hamada's face was covered with water now as well. Mr. Hamada was at a loss, but none the less, opened the door of the car in an act of hope. Before he closed his eyes, a man came. Mr. Hamada could make out a 'San Fransokyo rescue team' on the t-shirt and looked more than grateful. The man was about to grab Mr. Hamada, but he shook his head vigorously and pointed at the back seat.

The rescue man pointed at Mr. Hamada's wife, but he once again shook his head. Then, he pointed to Hiro and Mr. Hamada nodded, his last act before death took over him. He lost the power to stay awake, and sunk down. Hiro was still managing to hold his breath, but he wasn't going to be able to hold on much longer. His doe eyes just decided to close tightly, refusing to open.

The rescue man did as Mr. Hamada said and took the little boy and swam up with him. Hiro felt the man grab him, but remained with his eyes shut, cautiousness leaving him.

Tadashi's POV

I was just getting out of school and my friend wasn't getting off my back about the dopey grin that was on my face. "Yo Tadashi, what's got you so happy? A girl?" his friend asked teasingly. I shook my head. "Nah, just my family. They were going to take me and brother out to a fancy dinner to celebrate my first day of school is all." I admit.

He shrugs. "Yeah, that sounds like your family all right." He says. I chuckle at him. "Well, see you tomorrow?" I ask. "Totally." He says, leaving. I'm waiting for my dad's car to come, but after fifteen minutes, I get mildly worried. Maybe they forgot? Nah, that can't be it. They would've called to tell me to walk home like normal. Just wait a little longer Tadashi, I tell myself.

Thirty minutes more pass and I get really worried. They should've been here by now. I decide to walk home and then call them from there. I make it down a block or two when I get a call from mom. God, I hope they aren't at school now, they might be upset that I decided to walk home. I hope they don't think I'm impatient. Maybe if I tell them I just got worried. I take a deep breath and answer the phone.  
>"Hey mom." I say.<p>

"Tadashi Hamada? Brother to Hiro Hamada?" a strange and very unfamiliar voice asks and I flinch.

"Y-yes?" I ask, voice cracking.

"Mr. Hamada, will you please come to the California medical hospital as soon as possible. Right away if possible." The voice says, monotone.

"I-is, everything okay? Is Hiro alright?" I ask, getting worried.

"Please come to the hospital at your earliest convenience." The voice says, hanging up.

Well, I definitely am worried now. I hope Hiro's alright. I don't know what I'd do if anyone in our family was hurt. I start running to the hospital. It's about a ten minute drive so it takes me a while to get there by foot, and when I reach it, I'm completely out of breath.

I hurry inside and head to the front desk. "Uh, a man called me to come here as soon as possible. My name's Tadashi Hamada." I say nervously. The lady looks at a clipboard and then gives me a majorly sympathetic look. Well that can't be good. Please be okay Hiro.

"Yes, take the elevator to the fourth floor and it's room number 407." She says sadly. I nod and rush to the elevator. I press the button and wait quite impatiently for the elevator to get here. After only two minutes, I'm fed up and decide to take the stairs. I run up the stairs like my life depends on it and finally reach the fourth floor.

Making my around until I reach room 407, I stare the door down, scared of what might be behind it. A man reaches me before I can open the door. "Tadashi Hamada?" he asks. I nod slowly.

"Come here." He says, leading me to a waiting room, gesturing me to sit down. "With all due respect sir, I really need to know what's going on with my brother." I say anxiously. He puts a hand up. "Your brother is going to be just fine son. It's your parents we need to talk about." he says carefully.

I feel my heart stop and my face feels really cold all of a sudden. My parents?

"What happened? Are they okay? They're not hurt are they?!" I ask desperately.

"Tadashi, I need you to calm down and brace yourself. This kind of news is never easy to deliver. Please calm yourself." He asks. I take about five minutes to take all this in. can I handle this? Probably not, but I HAVE to know what's happening. He said Hiro WOULD be fine. What happened to him? I wonder of all the possibilities, but then urge the man to continue. He nods curtly and proceeds.

"Okay Tadashi, your family was in a rather extreme and severe car crash. The car was totaled and sunk in the river." He starts, waiting for my reaction. I gasp in horror. "Did they make it out?" I ask, willing myself to believe they did.

The man sighed. "Tadashi, the rescue wasn't informed that quickly, keep that in mind when I tell you what happened. One of our guys got to the scene pretty quickly since he was around the area. He went in and brought all the bodies out as quickly as he could. Your brother was the quickest to regain consciousness so we took him into intensive care immediately. Then we waited for your mother and father to come to. I'm very and extremely sorry to tell you that your father had far too much water in his lungs and couldn't make it. Your mother is in intensive care as we speak." He says solemnly.

I blinked and tried to wake up, hoping desperately that this was all a bad nightmare and wasn't really happening. I pinched himself. To my utter dismay, I was still in the waiting room. I tried to take in the fact that I was now fatherless.

I was trying to be as thankful as possible that I had a mother and brother still. Sure I wasn't that close with Hiro. The guy didn't talk much to anyone except mom. Good thing they both survived. But the hole was still there. The hole that could never be filled again. Or at least that's what I believed. The hole that used to be where my dad was.

Suddenly, a very horrible idea strikes me.

"Did my mom come to? What are her chances?" I ask, hoping that she would make it. The man sighs heavily.

"Tadashi, I hate to be the one to tell you this, but your mother was in the worst physical condition when she was rescued. She had bruises, cuts, and her head was hit when the car was crashed. We don't know the full details, but her brain is going through internal bleeding. The chances of her surviving are simply too slim. She is going to pass away slowly. Just be thankful that Hiro is alright. You still have him. He's going to be just fine. The doctors are just running a few final tests on him right now." He says.

Parentless. That's the only word into my mind. Hiro and I are going to be fatherless and motherless. No parents. Who will take care of us? Where will we go? What's going to happen to me? And Hiro of course.

"Who's going to take care of us?" I ask, dreading the answer. Mom and dad never talked about relatives. Mom did mention a sister once, but she lived in San Fransokyo, a whole other country. I've never even seen her.

"We looked through your parents contacts and found a relative to care for you, though it's a ways away. She fully agreed to help you and she'll be here in a week or so." He says.

"Who?" I ask, already having a good hunch on who this person was.

"Your Aunt Cass. Your mother's sister from San Fransokyo." He says.

I process everything I just heard. Dad and mom and goners. All I've got left is Hiro. My baby brother. He's four. He's probably traumatized.

"When can I see my brother?" I ask. The man checks his watch and then looks at me. "You can actually go see him now. Just…just be prepared Tadashi." He says carefully. I nod and head over to the room.

I take a deep breath as I stand by the door. Brace yourself Tadashi. Deep breath out. I open the door and see a beyond tired looking Hiro spread-out on the hospital bed. He looks as if he wants to go home. His breathing is a bit uneven and he looks somewhat relieved to see me, though he doesn't speak.

"Hey Hiro. How are ya holdin up?" I ask.

Hiro remains still and silent.

"You okay?" I ask.

No response.

"Hiro?" I try once more.

Nothing. Blank, empty, voiceless stare.

I'm embarrassed and the tension in the room is so thick, you can cut it. I scoot out of the room and take my hat off, screaming into it lightly. The man who told me what happened patted my shoulder sympathetically.

"It'll get better son. Just you wait and see. In a few weeks, you and Hiro will move to San Franksokyo and meet new people. You'll be back on your feet before you know it." He says comfortingly, though his words helped me in no way at all. Eventually, he left, leaving me all alone in the cold hospital. I sat myself in a chair and put my face in my hands.

That's when a nurse came. "Tadashi Hamada?" she asked. I looked up to meet her gaze. "We have been informed that your mother has…passed on. I'm truly sorry about this. On the brighter side, your brother seems to be making a full recovery, no internal damage such as memory loss or internal bleeding is showing, which is fantastic." She says. I stoically nod, indicating I heard her. She takes her leave.

I bury my face in my hands again, but this time I break down. Tears are falling and I feel pending emptiness in my heart. It's unbearable. To think just moments ago that we supposed to be laughing and having a good time made my heart twist and ache in ways you couldn't possibly imagine. Why'd this have to happen to me? And Hiro! How would I explain all this to him? What would I say? That our parents are dead? The poor guy's only four. He probably wouldn't even understand.

All the drama and conflict surged through my body, making me sob uncontrollably, only this time, there was no one here to dry my tears. No one.

I don't know how long I stayed like this, but I somehow fell asleep because the next thing I knew, I was yawning and stretching. I blinked a bit and rubbed my eyes, which were still wet and warm.

I decide to go check on Hiro since I'm up.

I head into his room. He's expressionless again. I feel so bad for the kid.

"Hey Hiro. Me, Tadashi, again. You feeling better?" I ask.

Silence.

"C'mon Hiro, talk to me. It's your older brother, Tadashi!" I plead. To my surprise, Hiro looks a bit irritated at this statement. He gives me a look.

"I know that you're my older brother. Didn't the nurse tell you I'm fine? I didn't forget anything. I don't have memory loss TADASHI." He says, clearly displeased with me.

"I'm sorry Hiro. I just- It's just- I only- I'm sorry." I blurt out, not sure what to say. He rolls his eyes. "When are we going home? Where's mommy and daddy?" he asks seriously. I gulp. I was hoping to god he wouldn't bring them up.

He evidently notices my lack of response and his expression turns into that of a sad one. "They're gone aren't they?" he asks solemnly. I widen my eyes in terror. How could Hiro possibly understand that?!

"It's okay Dashi. I kind of expected it." He says, voice cracking a bit.

"I- how did you know?" I asked stupidly.

"I know you never paid too much attention to me, but mommy said I had a gift. She said I learned fast. That I was really smart. I can talk well for someone my age. I can understand things better than most people my age. Stuff like that." He explains. My mouth makes an 'oh' shape.

"So, whose going to take care of us then?" he asks curiously. I'm surprised he isn't crying and Hiro can sense it because he comments on it.

"Dashi, I can understand it, but I'm still only a kid. I can't understand how utterly serious it is. I'm probably not going to remember much about it when I'm older. Get it?" he asks.

I don't comment on it. Hiro is one smart kid. How'd I miss that?

"Aunt Cass is going to take care of us." I say, Hiro wrinkles his nose. "Who?" he asks. "She lives in San Fransokyo, so we get to move there. It'll be really fun." I say, trying to convince myself more than him.

"When?" he plainly asks. "About 2 weeks." I say. He nods and doesn't say anything more. Even as I talk to him, he remains wordless.

Hiro's finally released from the hospital and that's music to my ears. We're on our way to the airport now, where we'll meet Aunt Cass. Hiro doesn't look very happy about all this. He hasn't really spoken to me since that one day at the hospital.

We're waiting patiently in the lobby when we finally see her. Or at least I do. From Hiro's expression, he was probably expecting an old hag and was surprised that Aunt Cass was young. Way younger than mom.

"Boys! There you are!" she cries, pulling me in for an immense bear hug, taking me completely off guard. She moves in to give one to Hiro next, but he ducks and grabs onto my leg for life. She giggles at that and merely pats his head affectionately. He looks agitated at that

"Well let's go kiddos." She says brightly. I can't understand how happy she can seem when her sister and brother in law were in a fatal car crash, killing them. I let it go though, gesturing Hiro to follow. He doesn't move, staying stuck to my leg like glue. I bend down to meet his gaze. "Hey, you want me to carry you?" I ask softly. He nods silently, holding his arms up. I hoist him up on my neck, but he's majorly displeased about that, so I take him off and ask him what's wrong.

"Like mommy did it." He simply whispers. My heart stops for a moment at the mention of mom, but I give in to what he wants. I pick him up and he buries his face into my chest.

Suddenly, my heart doesn't feel empty. It almost feels like the hole is filling up for just a split second, then the hole returns. But a warm tingly feeling stays. I glance at Hiro in wonder, shake my head, and then head to the plane with Aunt Cass.

When we get to San Fransokyo, Aunt Cass takes us to some place called the lucky cat café. I don't want to hurt her feelings, but I'm really not in the mood for sweets.

"Hey Aunt Cass, I'm really not that hungry and Hiro's sleeping. Can we just go home?" I ask as politely as I could. She cocks her head to the side in confusion, but then realization hits her.

"Oh! Tadashi, this _is _home. My house is actually in the bakery." She says gleefully. I widen my eyes. "You live _in_ the bakery?!" I muse. She nods with a smile and opens the door.

"So you and Hiro will share a room, that's okay right?" she asks cautiously. I actually think about that for a moment. I glance at the Hiro in my arms. We've never shared a room before and I never really thought too much about it. Actually, this could be a good thing. We could keep each other company after what happened.

"That's fine. That's perfect." I say. She seems satisfied with my answer and goes to her room calling, "Tadashi, I'm going to go shower. You and Hiro get settled and make yourselves right at home now, okay?"

I sigh and carry Hiro and myself upstairs. There's only one room up here so it's not hard to find. I open it and it's pretty spacious. Claiming the right side for myself, I dump Hiro's stuff onto the left bed with my left hand, while still holding Hiro with my right arm.

Suddenly, the little guy wakes up. He looks around in confusion before assuming what happened. He groggily gets out of my arms and looks around curiously.

"How is it?" I ask him. I get a shrug as a response. Upset that I won't get him to talk, I jump into bed and sigh, trying my hardest to relax.

Before I can truly relax, Hiro breaks down on the floor and begins bawling his eyes out without any warning whatsoever. I rush down to the floor next to him and try to calm him down, but he's in full blown hysterics.

"Hiro! Hiro listen to me! Listen to me! You're fine, you're absolutely fine! It's okay, I'm here!" I say, pulling him into me. He stops screaming hysterically for a moment, and I think he's alright but boy was I way off. He starts punching my chest as hard as he can (Which isn't that hard for a four year old) and screaming at me, though his words aren't directed at me.

"WHY? WHY ME? WHY DIDN'T HE CHOOSE MOMMY?! YOU CAN LIVE WITHOUT ME. YOU CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT MOMMY OR DADDY!" He cries hysterically.

"SHH, Hiro it's alright. You're just in shock." I say soothingly.

"NO DASHI! You don't understand." He says, whispering the last part. I look to him for an explanation.

"We were underwater, me, mom, and dad. The rescue guy came and was about to save him, but he told him to choose me. He made the guy save me. He sacrificed himself to save me. ME. Why though? You don't need me. We hardly talk to each other. He could've had the guy save mom. But no, he chooses me! WHY? WHY DASHI WHY?!" he demands, banging on my chest with his tiny fists once more. I try to calm him down, but to no avail. I don't know what to do so I just hug him there while he continues to beat my chest with his punches, crying.

His story wows me. I didn't know that's what happened.

Suddenly, Hiro stops crying. "Red." He says.

"What?" I ask.

"Red."

"What red? What do you mean Hiro?"

"Red car. It was a red car that hit us. I remember." He says, wiping away tears. "Oh Hiro." I say comforting him as best as I could. He keeps sniffling, but the bawling and hysterics are thankfully over.

"What time is it?" he asks softly. "Late." I reply. "We should get to bed." I say, taking his pajamas out of his hand carrier for him. He nods and goes to the bathroom to put them on.

I put a hand to my vibrating chest. He's in so much pain and it hurts me. He's never shown signs of violence and it worries me that he punched me like crazy. I change myself and sit on my bed, waiting for Hiro to finish. After five minutes, I decide to check on him.

I knock on the bathroom door. "Go away." He says feistily. I try to open it, but he locked it. I bang on the door lightly. "Hiro, please open it. It's me, Tadashi." I say.

"What part of 'my memory is perfectly fine' did you not understand the first time?" he responds smartly. "Hiro please. I want to help you!" I plead. He opens the door. "What are you gonna do?! Nothing you do can bring back mom and dad! Can it?!" he demands. I remain silent. "That's what I thought." He whispers, beginning to cry again. He's about to shut the door, but I block it from closing with my foot. It hurts, but I'm too focused on helping Hiro.

"Hiro, I may not be able to bring them back, but I can comfort you. And vice versa." I reason.

"How could I help you?" he asks, completely curious.

"Well, when I held you, I felt some of the pain go away. We just have to be there for each other. We have to make sure _we_ stay safe. I can't stand to lose you too. We can't take each other for granted." I explain. Hiro seems to be taking my words in.

He comes out of the bathroom, red eyed. Closing the door, he turns to me with his arms raised. "Up." He says simply. Instead of listening to his request, _I_ bend down. "C'mere." I say, stretching my arms out as wide as I can.

He obliges and crashes into me full force, wrapping his teeny tiny little bone arms around me. I do the same. A few seconds later, Hiro pipes up. "Dashi, why does this help? Nothing changed. Mom and dad are still gone. I'm still upset, but it's decreasing. I don't understand it. It doesn't scientifically make sense." Hiro says.

I ruffle his hair. "Well little guy, this is something not even science can explain. It's called love." I say, laughing. Hiro wrinkles his nose. "Gross." He says childishly, pulling away from the hug. I laugh even harder.

"How gross is this?!" I cry, playfully tackling him to the floor. Hiro's majorly taken aback. He starts laughing too, making me happy. "Stop it! Get off of me!" he cries. I smirk at him.

"Not until you admit you love me." I demand mockingly. Hiro sticks his tongue out at me. "No way." He says. I reluctantly move when I hear Aunt Cass call us. "Boys! Dinner time!"

I get up off of the floor and head to the door. Hiro avoids my gaze, remaining on the floor. "What's up little guy?" I ask. He mumbles something utterly incoherently. "What?" I ask.

"I l-love you Dashi. Okay, and don't forget it because I probably won't say it again!" he warns threateningly. I laugh and hug him once more. He pushes away. "Still gross." He says childishly.

"Hiro, feel better?" I ask cautiously. "Yup. It's me, Hiro. I'm fine." He says teasingly. I shake my head. "Whatever bone head." I say. "Bone head?" he asks. "Your new nickname." I explain. "You never gave me a nickname before." He points out. "Yeah, well, I didn't really take the chance to get to know you before Hiro. I don't really know much about you to be honest. I wanna change that immediately." I explain.

"I'm not good at making friends and getting to know people Dashi." He says softly. "Hey hey. Don't worry. I'll take you step by step." I say, slightly joking. He smiles softly at me and nods.

"Well, getting to know someone means figuring out all the deep and personal stuff." I say. Hiro raises an eyebrow. "Deep and personal huh?" he asks. I nod very seriously.

Okay, what's your favorite color?" I ask. Hiro smirks teasingly at me. "Now you've crossed the line. That's a bit too personal." He says playfully. I laugh at his sarcasm. This kid's going to be really funny when he grows up. Either that, or he's going to get himself beat up.

"It's blue. What about you?" he asks. "Mine's blue as well. Why's yours blue?" I ask.

"It's the color of my hoodie, whys yours blue?"

"It's the color of my favorite hat. What's your favorite subject?"

"Science. Yours?"

"Mine too!" I say, shocked in a good way. Who knew Hiro and I had so much in common.

"Dashi, what's your biggest fear." He asks softly. The questions catches me off guard. "Why do you ask?" I ask. Hiro looks down.

"Mine was losing mom and dad. Now I don't know what to fear." He admits in a small whisper. My heart goes out to Hiro. He's only four. No one should lose their parents when they're only four.

"I guess I fear of losing you Hiro. That's all I can think about lately. You were the only one that survived. I could've lost all three of you, but fate decided that I needed you too much I guess. I need to be the best brother ever to make up for what happened though." I say.

"You don't need to make it up for anything. It wasn't your fault. It was the stupid break's." he says bitterly. I'm confused. "Hiro, what do you mean? I thought you said a red car hit you?" I ask, completely lost.

He sighs. "I didn't tell you the whole story Dashi. When we were in the car, dad was going way too fast and mom told him to slow down before the car swerved like crazy. I didn't realize it at first, but looking back, the break must've been broken. Mom still did everything in her power to make sure I stayed safe, explaining why I'm not bruised at all. Only emotionally scarred." He admits.

I pull Hiro close. "Hiro I'm so sorry. You shouldn't have had to go through that. I wish I could take all the pain away so bad." I say to him.

"No, I can't be selfish. I can only imagine how you feel. Getting a call from some strange man that your family's been hurt on your very first day of high school. We were supposed to celebrate that day, but look what happened." He says, put out.

"It'll be alright. We'll get through it." I say.

"You know, people keep saying that, and until you said it just now, I didn't believe it. Maybe you're right. I don't feel as sad as before. Thanks Nii saan." He says. I smile.

"Maybe we're enough for now." I suggest. Hiro nods.

"Maybe we're enough for now." He mirrors. Our moment is interrupted by Aunt Cass. "Boys, dinner! Now! I called you ten minutes ago, it's getting cold! I know it's really late, but you need food in your bodies before you go to sleep." she calls.

"We better head down huh?" I say. Hiro stretches his arms up. I roll my eyes playfully at him before lifting him up. He snuggles into my chest and I can't help but chant "Gross!" mockingly. He glares at me, but hides a smirk.

Maybe we're enough for now.

I'm so sorry I didn't update yesterday, but I had a good reason! I have mid-terms coming up and I have to cram like crazy to keep my grades up. I don't know how often I'll be updating because of this, but I can't promise it'll be everyday anymore. Again, really sorry. Also, disclaimer! That part where Hiro said he was bad at making friends? That was from The Hunger Games, Catching Fire. It was the scene where Peeta and Katniss attempt to make nice. I just thought it fit there.

Girl you wouldn't expect


	13. Chapter 13

Brothers

13

Ages

Hiro: 13

Tadashi: 18

Tadashi's POV

"What happened?" I ask Aunt Cass. "I don't know. He's just looked depressed since he came home. If he'll tell anyone what happened, it's you Tadashi. Please help him." she says pleadingly. "Don't worry Aunt Cass. I'll make sure he's okay." I promise, heading upstairs to see what's got my bros boxers in a knot.

I barge in to see Hiro sadly tossing a magnetic piece up at the ceiling and catching it. "Alright little bro, what happened?" I ask.

"Life."

"One worded responses? Really Hiro. I thought we got passed that when you were four." I say. Hiro shrugs at me. "I guess I'm just too immature." He says bitterly. Something tells me his words held a double meaning. "What did they say?" I ask knowingly.

"Who?" he asks, playing dumb. I roll my eyes. "Don't play stupid bone head. The kid who made fun of you. What happened? Are you being bullied?" I ask seriously. He shakes his head. "Chill Tadashi. It's nothing. I'll get over it." He says, going back to throwing his little magnetic. I frown.

Grabbing the magnetic away from him, I cross my arms. "You can have this back when you tell me what's wrong." I say firmly. He sighs and blows a piece of hair out of his face to glare at me.

"I was humiliated in front of the entire school is what happened." He says, agitated. I feel myself get angry. "Who? Who was it? Let me teach them a lesson real quick." I say, flexing my muscles. "You can't." he says solemnly. "Why not?" I demand. "Because it was a girl!" he yells, cheeks burning red now. He refused to meet my gaze after that declaration.

"Hiro. Talk to me." I beg. He talks, but doesn't face me. "Penelope. Penelope Reese. Beautiful blonde hair and deep blue eyes. Cheerleader, gorgeous, heartless, cruel, and a bitch." Hiro says, going from a dreamlike expression to one of pure anger. I stay silent, not wanting to interrupt his raging self. Hiro can get pretty angry when he wants to be.

"It started about three weeks ago. I obviously had the hots for her. We had a project in science and we could choose our partners. I should've known she never would have picked me for liking me, but I was stupid. I obviously said yes and we started working together. While we were working one day, she looked me dead in the eyes and I froze. It was so intense. Then, she said she liked me for a while now, but thought I didn't feel the same because I was smarter than her. I was so blinded, I believed her. We 'went out' for two weeks." He said, putting it in quotation marks.

I had a sickening feeling that I knew where this story was going.

"So, anyways, she gave a note to one of her friends, Chloe, to give to me. Or so I thought. Turns out the note was a sick joke played on me by Chloe and Penelope herself." He said sourly, apparently reliving the scenario in his head. My bro's cheeks were a bright red. He was clearly embarrassed and really didn't want to talk about it.

"Keep going Hiro. Talking about it will make you feel better. Remember, I'm not here to judge you. I promise." I say, crossing my heart. He takes a breath and nods, trying to calm himself down. His cheeks turn to a more normal color now.

"The note said, 'meet me in the back of the school ASAP –Penelope' and so I did what it said. I went to the back of the school and she was there, in her cheer leading outfit. She looked really pretty and I told her so. She giggled and pulled me closer to her and I blushed. I didn't know if she was going to kiss me or what. So I waited and she started leaning in. I was too and as soon as I closed my eyes, she pushed me into the wall and started laughing hysterically. I was obviously confused as to why she was laughing at me and I looked at her for an explanation. She pointed to the left of us and I saw a hoard of her girlfriends with their phones out, snapping pictures and videos of the entire scene. I didn't know what to do, god Tadashi, I was BEYOND embarrassed. I sunk to the floor and didn't look at anyone, especially Penelope. How could I? She made such a fool out of me. Right when I thought it was over and they were going to leave, Penelope whispers in my ear "Why would I ever be interested in a nerd like you? I only 'dated' you because my ex bet me that I couldn't make an A on this science project. That's where you came in. I played you along. You're such a nerd for thinking that I'd like you. I mean, what girl would want you? You're a loser." She spat all that into my ear and took her leave. Tadashi, you can't even understand how embarrassed I am. I'm never going back to school again." he says, burying his face in his arms.

"Whoa Hiro. Let's not be irrational here. Take a deep breath. Calm yourself." I say soothingly. He picks his head up and does as I say, though I noticed his face was a fresh sanguine. This was just him telling the story. I can't begin to imagine what it must've been like to actually have been there in that situation.

"Say whatever wise wisdom you want Tadashi. But nothing you say will make me go to school EVER again." he says stubbornly. "So you want to be a 13 year old high school dropout?" I ask sarcastically. He looks at me expressionless.

"Of course not. After that happened, I asked to be tested out of 11th grade and they agreed. I took the test and aced it. Then I asked to be tested out of 12th grade and they were shocked, but they agreed again. I got a 100 on it and they let me graduate privately on my request. Here's my diploma." He says, tossing me a piece of crumbled paper that he pulls out from under his bed. I widen my eyes. "Unbelievable." I say, looking over the paper.

I clench my fists and glare angrily at nothing in particular. How DARE that girl make Hiro feel this worthless? The kid just GRAUATED and he doesn't even seem to care. I wanna knock some sense into this chick, but I know I can't hit a girl, no matter what she did. It's unethical. Hiro seems concerned at my current state because he comments on it.

"Tadashi? I'm sorry okay. I promise not to graduate without permission again." he offers meekly. Despite the hot atmosphere in my head, I laugh at his comment, causing him to smile. "Okay bonehead, let's get back at this Penelope." I say, a plan already in my head.

"Uh, Tadashi, we can't hit girls." Hiro reminds me. "I know I know, but we can always find other ways to get payback." I say suggestively. Hiro looks me up and down.

"Tadashi? Devious? And talking about revenge? You okay bro?" he asks me. I blush slightly and cross my arms, something I always did to make myself seem superior to him. "Whatever, you in or what?" I ask. Hiro nods. "Absolutely." He says eagerly. "Then let's go." I say, heading outside.

I noticed Hiro wasn't following me. "Hiro?" I call. "Tadashi, I can't. I j-just can't show my face in front of them anymore. Especially Penelope." He says, ashamed. "C'mon Hiro. You're going to have to face this sooner or later." I say. "I pick later." Hiro says. "Come on Hiro." I say, trying to egg him out of the room.

"Dashi please! You don't understand. They're all just going to laugh and make fun of Me." he says, pleading me not to make him leave. I'm about to keep convincing him when I see true fear in his eyes. I hold back my lecture and sigh. Poor kid. He had to pull the puppy face for this. It must be serious.

"Alright. I won't make you." I say after a while. Hiro's face significantly brightens up and I smile at that.

"But I'm not going to sit here and not make things right. I'm giving that Penelope a taste of her own medicine." I say, rushing out the door before Hiro can process my sentence.

Hiro's POV

Did Tadashi seriously just leave me here all alone? In my time of need? To confront Penelope? I can't believe it and I most definitely can't just sit here and not do anything about it. I get off of my bed and wash my face, in a sad attempt to wash away the embarrassment. It didn't really work, but I felt a tad bit better that Tadashi knew. The feeling faded instantly when I remembered that Tadashi was gonna do something stupid and probably get himself into trouble. The guy didn't know the first thing about revenge. In fact, he would rarely ever hurt a fly, so he must've been pretty miffed.

I grab my favorite hoodie and cover my face with it, hoping not to be identified, and head to school yard, where the cheer leaders practiced. I see Tadashi talking to one of the cheer leaders, Zoey. She nods at whatever Tadashi's saying, mesmerized by him. Then she points at Penelope and winks at him. I groan in disgust. Why are girls so much into older guys anyways?

I see Tadashi approach Penelope with a less than happy expression. She notices Tadashi's presence and smiles brightly, holding her hand out for him to shake, which he rejects.

I don't know what compelled me to, but I rushed to stop him. "Tadashi NO!" I yell. He looks at me and I'm grateful that he realizes that I'm trying to hide who I am.  
>"What are you doing?" he asks me. "Don't Tadashi. It's not worth it." I say. He looks at me in disbelief. Penelope looks at me and swishes her ponytail around. "Hiro? Hiro Hamada? Is that you? Don't try to hide." She says snottily.<p>

I reluctantly take the hoodie off of my face and look at her, intimidated. She rolls her eyes at me. "God Hiro, let it go. I was never interested in you and I never will be, so beat it." She says rudely. I gulp and step back, unable to retaliate; but that doesn't stop Tadashi.

"I wanna know. What or who gave you the right to speak to my brother like that." He demands. I mentally face palm myself. Tadashi's just making it worse.

"Wow Hiro. You actually told your brother to fight this battle for you? I knew you were wimpy, but this is just pathetic." She says, putting a pompom to her cheek.

"Shut up Penelope. Just because you're nowhere near pretty enough to get a decent guy, doesn't mean you're allowed to torment my brother like that." Tadashi says warningly. Penelope clearly feels like she's got the upper hand because of how she retaliates. I just fall back, wishing deeply that I had the ability to make myself disappear.

Normal POV

Penelope stood her ground. "Okay Hamada. Don't think I'm afraid of you just because you're older than Me." she says. Tadashi glares at her. "I don't care if you're afraid of me or not. You owe my brother a major apology." He demands, causing Hiro to feel even more embarrassed. "Make me." she says challengingly. Tadashi smirks. "Alright then." He says, indicating that he accepted the challenge. By now, a crowd of jocks, cheer leaders, track kids, swimmers, and even nerds had assembled toward the commotion, waiting to see what would happen.

"What are you going to do? Read all the numbers of pi until I die of boredom?" she asks tauntingly. Tadashi shakes his head, an amused look taking over his face.

"Tell me Penelope, how old are you?" he asks calmly.

"Fourteen, though I don't care about our age difference. I won't be scared or tormented by a nerd Hamada."

"Fourteen. How many boyfriends have you had?"

"Okay, why are you all up in my personal life?"

"You said to make you quit disrespecting my brother. This is how I'm doing it."

"That information is irrelevant." She said with an eye roll.

"Sounds like someone's afraid to admit it. Ashamed?"

"Psh, as if. I've had 12. Big whoop. Happy?"

"I see. And you're how old again?"

"14." She said, annoyed at repeating it.

"Tell me Penelope, are you currently in a relationship?"

"I honestly don't understand where this is going, but yeah." Penelope responded, looking and sounding bored.

"What's his name?"

"Todd."

"Senior?"

"Yes."

Tadashi smiled, Penelope still looked thoroughly confused and irritated.

"Is Bobby your ex?"

"Yes."

"One last question." Tadashi said, looking satisfied. Hiro looked like he was going to hurl.

"No. I have a question for you hot shot. Why does any of this matter?"

"You'll see. Now, I heard from a very reliable source that you're no longer a virgin. In fact, you cheated on Bobby while you both were together and now, you claim to be dating Todd, but that same source confirmed that you are secretly with Bobby as well."

Penelope's eyes widened. The entire crowd around them "Ooooooooohed." The blonde cheerleader glared harshly at Tadashi.

"You had no right to invade my personal life like that!" she hissed. Tadashi shrugged. "_YOU_ had no right to disrespect and hurt my brother like you did, but you didn't give a crap. My behavior is entirely justifiable. All the kids looked at Penelope in disbelief.

"You were the one who uploaded that video of Hamada's bro? That's low Penelope." One bystander said.

"Really Penelope? You must be an only child. Thinking the world revolves around you. News flash, no one likes you." Another added.

"Penelope? You CHEATED on me?!" Bobby asked, furious. He stomped over to where Tadashi and Penelope were standing, Hiro hidden behind Tadashi.

Penelope looked like she shrunk three inches. Fear etched clearly on her face. "B-Bobby, it was like a year ago. Let it go." She said nervously. Bobby looked even angrier at her pathetic sentence. "You're such a whore. And a bitch. How do you even look at yourself?" he asked, walking away, leaving Penelope's mouth wide open in shock. As if things couldn't get much worse for the blonde, Todd came into the scene.

"Penelope. This is just pathetic. How many times do I have to tell you you're not my girlfriend? I never liked you and I never will. Just because I don't feel anything for you doesn't mean you can go leading poor innocent people like Hiro on like that. I let you down easy. Too bad stupid freshman have to go and create drama all the time." He said, shaking his head and fleeing the scene once more.

Penelope began crying, but no one cared enough to comfort her. She clearly deserved it. Tadashi met her gaze. She looked broken.  
>"Listen Penelope, I am one to give second chances. If you simply apologized to Hiro instead of acting like you own the world and can freely torment people, then I wouldn't have publicly embarrassed you like that. Too bad you didn't. You're just too self-centered. It finally just came back to you though. I think you have something to say to my brother, don't you?" Tadashi asked.<p>

Penelope sniffled. "Hiro, I'm so sorry. I really and truly am. If I knew this is what it felt like…I just… I'm so sorry Hiro. I know I don't deserve your forgiveness, but I'd be eternally grateful if you found I in your heart to forgive me someday. I can't even express how sorry I am. That was a major bitchy thing to do. You're so lucky to have a brother like Tadashi who cared enough to do all this for you. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got issues to sort out." She said, taking her leave.

Hiro piped out from behind Tadashi and shuffled his feet nervously.

"Uh, hey Tadashi listen, I uh, really appreciate that. So uh, you know- "It's okay Hiro. I know how hard it is for you to say thank you." Tadashi says teasingly. Hiro nudged Tadashi in the shoulder.

They began to walk home together. "Hey Tadashi, how did you know all that stuff about Penelope?" he asked, confused. "Well, let's just say Todd and I go way back." Tadashi said with a smile. Hiro looked around nervously before looking up at Tadashi with a determined look.

"Thank you Tadashi. So much. I can't believe you did that for me. Actually I can, but that doesn't change the fact that it was awesome. I know I don't mention or show it enough, but I really appreciate you Tadashi. You're the best big brother/father figure a guy could probably have." He said quickly. Tadashi rose an eyebrow.

"Hey, maybe you should get led on by girls more often. I don't mind these speeches." Tadashi said playfully. Hiro rolled his eyes, but smiled.

"Thanks again Tadashi." He said appreciatively. Tadashi ruffled Hiro's hair, causing the younger Hamada to pull back. "Anytime little bro. always and forever." He promised, grabbing Hiro's hand. Hiro obliged to this action and they walked back to the café, smiling.

Done and done. Don't forget to leave a review. Mention anything I could've done better. I wanted to know if anyone thought that I changed the characters' personalities too much for the worse. Anything you think I should change or make better, please let me know. And of course as always, positive comments make my day, so review away!

Girl you wouldn't expect


	14. Chapter 14

Brothers

14

Ages

Hiro: 12

Tadashi: 17

Hiro's POV

In my defense, it seemed like a pretty good idea at the time. Also, if Tadashi could do it, I figured I could too. Boy was I wrong. Way off. Like if the answer to a math problem was 24, I got 900/32. That's how jacked up this was. You're probably wondering what the heck I'm talking about and if not, too bad I'm going to tell you anyway.

It all started when Tadashi so foolishly claimed that he was smarter than me. Let's go back a bit.

About 30 minutes ago

Normal POV

Hiro was quietly working on a robot and Tadashi was just as silently watching in fascination. The silence was then broken by Tadashi's knowing chuckle. Hiro glanced up from his bot to look at his older brother. Tadashi didn't say anything and looked away on purpose to confuse Hiro.

The younger Hamada rose an eyebrow. "Yes Tadashi? Is there something you want to say?" he questioned, hand on his chin. Tadashi looked at him with a smile.

"I just think it's funny that you think you're so smart when you made a rookie mistake." He said, clearly amused. Hiro raised both his eyebrows. "Oh yeah big shot? Enlighten me, what'd I do?" Hiro asked. Tadashi shrugged. "Hey, you're the super genius. I think you can figure it out." The older Hamada said plainly, retreating to his bed. Hiro looked frustrated, but none the less, checked over his robot. Finding absolutely nothing wrong or anything he could improve, he walked over to Tadashi, who was biting back an amused grin. Hiro waited for an explanation.

Out of nowhere, Tadashi started laughing. Hiro did not look amused. "Tadashi, I seriously couldn't find anything wrong with it. What did I do?" Hiro asked. "Wow Hiro. I didn't think you'd fall for it, but you did. This is hilarious." Tadashi said, his laughter dying down. Finally, Hiro realized he was being doped. "Real mature Tadashi." Hiro said, walking back to his robot.

"Hey, it's not my fault I'm smarter than you little bro." Tadashi said playfully. Hiro turned to face his older brother, a look of utter disbelief playing his features. "Tadashi, that's ridiculous. I think the entire world knows that I'm way smarter than you'll ever be." He retaliated. Tadashi raised an eyebrow.

"Oh is that so?" the older Hamada asked. Hiro nodded in confirmation, going back to working on his robot. "Prove it." Tadashi said simply. Hiro stood up and pointed a finger at his older brother. "There is nothing that you can do or understand that I can't." he said confidently.

"Go to college, be an older brother, look like _this_, drive a moped." Tadashi said, listing things off. Hiro scoffed as it the things he mentioned were mere child's play.

"I totally COULD go to college, I CHOSE not to. I can be an older brother and look like you, because of that machine I built." Hiro said satisfied. "Hmm, okay, but what about that last one?" Tadashi asked. "Totally COULD drive your moped." He said nonchalantly. "Oh really Hiro? Prove it." Tadashi said, knowing Hiro both couldn't and wouldn't.

Too bad he was WRONG.

"Alright." Hiro said, heading out the door to the outside world. Tadashi widened his eyes. "Unbelievable." He said, running after him.

Tadashi's POV

I went outside only to see Hiro firing up my moped, looking determined. "Hiro, get off of that now!" I cried, getting worried that he was serious. Hiro looked back to meet my concerned gaze. "Don't worry Tadashi, I've got my helmet on like you forced me to remember to wear every time I get on." He assured. My eyes widened more as if it were even possible.

"Hiro please! You're not thinking clearly. Get off!" I plead. Hiro shakes his head. "Not until I prove that I'm smarter." He said, revving up the engine. I blink and see a flashback of mom and dad getting in a car crash, ending their lives. I couldn't let that happen to Hiro.

"Hiro, you're smarter, way smarter. I'm sorry I ever even competed against you. Just please get down." I beg, down on my knees now. Hiro looks me over. He looks like he's considering getting down and I feel a spark of hope. He's off of the moped and I smile in relief. "Thank god Hiro. What were you thinking?! You could've been seriously injured. You don't even know how to ride one!" I scold.

Hiro then hops back onto the moped and I get a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach. "Hiro?!" I question. "You still don't believe I can do it, so I have to prove it to you." He said, pride taking over his face.

My heart starts beating at an uncontrollably unhealthy rate and I start running over to the moped. I nearly grab the hoodie of my idiotic brother's jacket when he drives off. Panic overtakes me and I'm at a loss for a full 30 seconds when I remember that Aunt Cass has a car and I scramble to get into it and drive off after Hiro.

Hiro's POV

Well, that's the beginning anyway. Now you're gonna see what the real deal is. So here I am, driving in Tadashi's moped. It really isn't that hard. I bet a 10 year old could do it. It's ridiculously simple. Suddenly, I hear someone honk behind me and I turn around (Since I'm at a red light, so it's safe, don't worry) to see Tadashi in Aunt Cass's car?!

He's saying something to me, but I can't hear him. He looks frightened out of his mind and frustrated like crazy. He rolls the window down and screams again. "HIRO GET OFF OF THE MOPED NOW! YOU PROVED YOU CAN DRIVE IT ALREADY SO GET OFF. YOU WERE RIGHT!" he yells like crazy. I decide to mess with him since he's such a stick in the mud. I put a finger to my chin and pretend to think.

"I don't know Tadashi, now that I think about, this is actually pretty fun. That, and it's a green light so I kind of have to go." I say, speeding off away from him.

Despite the fact that I'm doing this to mess with Tadashi, it really is fun to drive. Now I know why Tadashi didn't get a car instead of a moped. The feel of the wind as you zoom across the city is unbelievably breathtaking. I could do this all day, every day.

Tadashi moves his car to the lane next to me and tries to get me off again. "Hiro please. I can't watch you do this!" He reasons. I sigh. Deciding I've scared him enough, I plan to stop. "Alright worry wart. I'm stopping at the upcoming gas station!" I yell to him. "Thank you!" he cries in relief.

There's a red light coming up and I press the breaks, only the moped isn't slowing down. I feel fear and panic and a whole other bunch of emotions swirling into my mind at unhealthy paces. "Hiro stop the moped, there's a red light!" Tadashi cries. I feel tears pricking my face. This was a stupid idea. I never should've done this. It's exactly what Tadashi was afraid of. I don't have the heart to tell him. This is going to break him. I wipe the tears away and try to talk to Tadashi, but my voice cracks regardless.

"T-Tadashi I'm s-so sorry." I say, tears welling up again; only this time, I don't try to wipe them away. I run the red light just as a car crashes into the side of the moped, barely missing me, but causing me to go flying across the street. I scream in terror and shield my face, not wanting to see anything. I feel immense pain shooting all over my body and I can't do anything. I slowly move my hands away from my face and see a car coming for me again. I finally come to my senses and move away, toward the curb just as it's about to make impact with my body.

I try to wipe the ever coming tears away, but new ones just come back too fast and I can't stop. The feeling I got when I was younger just flew past me and I had a flashback. The time my parents and I were in a car crash. The break stopped working and I couldn't do anything. This was the second time I came to a near death experience. My heart can't take it and I can't stop the tears from flowing. I manage to hear frantic footsteps approach me despite my heavy and loud sobbing. I look up to see a beyond worried Tadashi.

He rushes to me and cradles me in his arms, making me feel a bit safer. I snuggle into him and can't meet his gaze. His hurt look would only make it worse.

I saw the fear in his eyes when he begged and pleaded for me to not drive the stinking moped. How can I face him now?

"D-Dashi, I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry." I hiccup. Tadashi shushed me and held me tight, not showing any signs of letting me go anytime soon. I clench onto his shirt tighter and feel anger surge through me. How could I have been so stupid? I ruined Tadashi's moped and more importantly, probably caused him all sorts of pain.

"Dashi, I'm so sorry I ruined your moped." I whisper. He simply shushed me again, rocking me back and forth soothingly. "Hiro, I don't care about the stupid moped. You're okay. That's all that matters." He said softly. His voice sounded somewhat broken, making me feel horrible.

"Dashi I- "You don't have to say anything Hiro. I was still proven wrong. You can ride the moped. The break not working wasn't your fault." He said, cutting me off. I looked down. That didn't make me feel better at all. I didn't know what to do or say, so I just stayed close to Tadashi, trying my hardest to get over the shock of it all.

After what felt like hours, Tadashi got up, but to my surprise, he picked me up. He must've been pretty strong to do that now. The last time I remembered him picking me up was when I was 10, and that was only because I sprained my ankle.

"Tadashi?" I ask. "Hiro, I think you're too banged up to walk. Where does it hurt?" he asks me. I touch my arms and legs. "I'm just sore in places. Nothing feels broken. I think I have some bruises near my ribs, but nothing too serious." I report. "Thank god." Tadashi said.

When we get home, I tug at Tadashi's shirt. He looks at me with concern. "You're not gonna tell Aunt Cass about this are you?" I ask carefully. Tadashi looks at me. His lips are tightly pressed together. "Hiro, you know I have to." He says patiently. "Dashi please?" I beg, using the nickname to try and wheedle out of it. Tadashi looks away from me.

"Hiro, you almost got killed. I can't just not let Aunt Cass know what happened. Besides, she'll find out that my moped's missing." Tadashi reasoned.

We're standing at the door and I'm getting cold feet. "Dashi, I'm scared." I say as he lets me down on the ground. He pats me on the shoulder. "I know Hiro, but this is for the best." He says. He's about to open the door when I grab his arm and pull him back. He looks at me with a tired expression.

"D-do you ever wonder what it would've been like?" I ask carefully.

"What?"

"I-if I died in that car crash too. Or if mom and dad survived but I didn't?" I ask, voice cracking. Tadashi pulled me into a mandatory hug. "Don't even think about things like that. I don't and neither should you. I'm happy you're here. I don't question why fate chose to keep you alive, but if I had to guess, I would say it's because we need each other. Don't dwell too much on these things though bonehead. I'm just happy you're safe." He says quietly.

"Tadashi, you're obviously a lot smarter than me." I say.

"Hiro, if I had to choose between being slightly intelligent and your safety, I'd choose the latter in a heartbeat, you know that right?" he asks. I gulp. "I do now." I say.

He pulls out of the hug and I let him open the door, bracing myself for Aunt Cass's yelling, questioning, and fussing over the both of us in a few seconds. But walking with Tadashi, I think I can handle it.

Don't forget to review!

Hope you liked it and continue to read.


	15. Chapter 15

Brothers

15

Ages

Hiro: 9 1/2

Tadashi: 14

Remember, my stories don't necessarily correlate with each other. They might somewhat include things from previous chapters in one way, and have no reference to things from other chapters in another. Just putting that out there.

Hiro's POV

Tadashi and I were casually eating ice cream and taking a walk. Just another ordinary last Friday of the month tradition. As I licked my strawberry with gummy bear filled tooth rotting cone, Tadashi started asking me random questions to test my intelligence.

"What's 76 squared?" he asked, licking his ice cream consisted of, *shudder*, snicker bars. I'm allergic to those poisonous pieces of evil sent from hell. Though I can't deny that I've wondered what they taste like.

"5,776. Geez Tadashi, could you have picked an even easier question?" I ask with a cocky smirk.

"Okay wise guy, what's the square root of 93,026,025?" he asks challengingly.

"9,645." I say in a bored tone.

"Alright, ask me a question." He says.

"Does it have to be a math question?" I ask.

"Nope. It can be about anything." He says, as if he's doing me a favor.

"Alright then. Hmm, what number am I thinking of?" I ask playfully. Tadashi gives me an unamused look.

"Knowing your trolling mind, it's probably a fraction or decimal." He says with a light smile. I grin. "Nope." I say. Tadashi looks surprised. "It was a _negative_ fraction or decimal." I say smartly. Tadashi pushes me playfully, causing me to burst out laughing.

"Now ask me a real question." He says seriously. "Alright alright, don't get your boxers in a knot bro. okay, who painted the Mona Lisa?" I question. "Psh, Leonardo de Vinci. Give me one I actually have to think about bone head." He says.

"Okay, you asked for it. How many days can a human go without food?" I ask. "Isn't it 20?" he responds, a bit unsure. "Actually, a human can go more than three weeks without food. Mahatma Gandhi went 21 days without food, but water's different. You need that more than food." I say.

"Alright whatever know it all. Ask me another one." He demands. "Alright, name the first 10 numbers of pi AFTER 3.14." I say. "No biggie." He says. "Okay so it's 3.14 obviously, then it's 159253589 and…alright I don't know that 10th one." He says, defeated. I smile in victory. "Oh like you can do better." He says, biting into the cone of his ice cream.

"Can so. 3.1415926535897932834626433-"alright, I get it." He says flatly. I laugh. Tadashi stays quiet for a while.

"Don't sweat it Dashi. Not everyone can be gifted like me. That would defeat the purpose of me being special. Besides, you're way better at everything else." I say, using a bitter tone at the end. This captures Tadashi's attention rather quickly. "What do you mean?" he asks.

I look at my shoes. "Making friends, getting people to like you. You're smart, but not over the top, so it's not like people are jealous of you. You're just a likable guy, you know." I say plainly with a shrug. I see a brotherly expression on Tadashi's face and I wave my arms around frantically.

"Don't worry though! It's not like I'm jealous or anything. I'm only saying this because you looked sad that I got those stupid pointless questions right!" I cry, trying to play it off. Tadashi raises an eyebrow. "You sure about that?" he asks. "Yeah. Feel better?" I ask, hoping he bought it. No one needs a protective Tadashi right now, especially not me.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He says, finishing the last of his ice cream and taking a bite of mine. I glare at him as he does, but don't actually mind that much.

We're walking home when Tadashi decides to make things all serious and touchy feely. "Hey Hiro, if there was something bothering you, you'd tell me right? I mean, we tell each other everything don't we?" he asks.

"Why ask all of a sudden? Something bothering you?" I ask. "Hiro, I think something's bothering you." He tells me. "There's nothing bothering me. You worry too much. I'm perfectly A-okay." I assure him. "Alright, if you're sure." He says, though I can tell I didn't convince him.

I hate how Tadashi can always tell when something's bothering me. I wish he could just leave me alone sometimes, but no, he always has to play the hero. I feel like our parents got our names mixed up. If anything, Tadashi's name should be Hiro.

Now we were just chilling in the dining hall of the Lucky Cat Café when Tadashi tries to figure out what's 'wrong' with me.

"Hiro, did people at school say something? Is this about you being smarter than them or something? I mean you _are_ the youngest kid in junior high." Tadashi says. I roll my eyes. "Tadashi, believe it or not, I can actually handle things myself. I can solve my own problems." I say. "I know, but you shouldn't HAVE to. I'm always here for you and I always will be." He says. "Oh c'mon, don't get all emotional on me. I know. You've said it a million times. I get it, you always wanna help. I just don't always need it." I say.

"You're right, you're right. I'm sorry. I just get worried. I know you don't have the best upbringing and I want to make sure you live a happy life you know? Like, I don't want you to think you're not being taken care of properly since…well you know." He says.

I merely blinked. I didn't know that Tadashi felt that way at all. I walk over to him. He seems to be in a daze after saying all of that.

"Hey, Tadashi!" I say, waving my hand in front of his face. "Huh, what?" he asks, snapping out of it. "If anything, I probably have the best upbringing. You're the best caretaker a kid could ask for. You're literally a brother, best friend, and mom/dad in one. I'll take that over nothing any day. Thanks for worrying about me, even though you get crazy sometimes." I admit, saying the last part teasingly. Tadashi smiles and looks at me with a knowing expression.

"You know what's coming!" he cried, holding his arms out. I widen my eyes in mock fear. "No, anything but the arms!" I beg. Tadashi laughs and chases after me. "BEAR HUG!" he screams, running toward me.

I keep running though, pulling chairs from tables as I do to stop Tadashi from catching me. Tadashi somehow manages to catch up to me and trap me in a bone crushing hug. "Ugh, Tadashi put me down." I demand, kicking my legs to get him to let me go. "Aw c'mon Hiro, you know you love my hugs of love." He says playfully. I shake my head and struggle to get out of his vice grip, thrashing about like a madman.

We're being so loud and obnoxious, we don't notice Tadashi's friends walk through the door looking at us with amused expressions. One of them clears their throat and chomps on her gum expectantly. "Guessing that's Hiro. The little munchkin you never shut up about." she says monotone. I give Tadashi a look, but he doesn't meet my gaze. He simply puts me down and adjusts his hat.

"Uh, hey guys, what's up?" he asks nervously. The chick with the gum puts her hands on her hips. "Gee Tadashi, maybe it's because Honey Lemon gathered us all here to tell us the big news?" she says.

"Right. Sorry Gogo, it must've flew past my mind. My bad. So where is she anyways? You're all here except her." Tadashi comments. "Well, Fred really wanted a donut. I couldn't let him barge here alone because no one keeps him in line like I do of course. And wasabi? I guess he just didn't wanna walk alone so he tagged along." Gogo said. Fred and Wasabi nodded in confirmation at this.

"Well, I guess this is as good a time as any. Guys, this is my baby bro Hiro." He says, pushing me toward them. "Hey Hiro." They all say. I mutter a hello back.

As you can guess, I'm not great at meeting new people.

"So Hiro, Tadashi seems to go on and on for hours about you, but tell us, are you as smart as he says?" Wasabi asks. I blink. I didn't think Tadashi mentioned me to his friends. I'm not that much of an interesting person despite my intelligence. "Uh, I guess that depends on how smart he said I was." I say with a shrug.

Gogo pops a bubble with her gum and quizzes me. "What's the capital of Honduras? Who was the sixteenth president of the United States? And what is the primary ingredient used for producing plastic?" she asks.

"In order. Tegucigalpa, Abraham Lincoln, and oil." I say flatly. I'm getting really tired of people asking me stupid pointless questions. When Tadashi asks them, I know it's for fun. But when others do, they're only doing it to test my intelligence.

"Guess he is." Gogo mumbles.

"Hey Hiro, why don't you go make some popcorn." Tadashi suggests, ushering him to the kitchen. I shrug and go to make some.

Tadashi's POV

Wow, how could I possibly forget that Honey Lemon's surprise thing was today?!

"So when's Honey Lemon getting here?" I ask. Gogo shrugs. "She said she'd be here any minute." The teen responded. I settled into a chair and the rest followed suit.

"So your bro's pretty cool." Fred comments.

"Yeah, I guess so. But don't tell him. Kid's got way too big a head as it is." I say. "We know. You've mentioned that a few hundred times." Gogo commented. Tadashi smiles bashfully. "You're really taken to him huh?" Wasabi says. "Yeah, wouldn't trade him for the world." I respond honestly.

"Ohhh! I sense brother complex!" Honey Lemon says, barging through the front door with a giant shopping bag in her hands. I feel my cheeks go red and not just from the sight of Honey Lemon for once.

"I do NOT have brother complex!" I protest. All my friends give me a look. "Yes you do." They all chorus. I bury my face in my hands. "Do not." I mumble.

"It's okay Tadashi. Everyone's different with their siblings. Gogo doesn't get along at all with her younger brother. Wasabi's okay with his younger sister, and I'm crazy close with my younger and older sisters! You're just in a tad deeper with your bond with Hiro. So that's why it's brother complex!" Honey exclaims eagerly.

I sigh and point to the bag. "So what'd you wanna show us?" I ask, trying my hardest to change the subject. Luckily it works because Honey starts jumping up and down excitedly. Before she can get into it, Hiro comes out with a bowl of popcorn and puts it on the table. He's about to leave, but I stop him.

"Hiro, don't you wanna stay and see what Honey Lemon wants to show us?" I ask. "Hey Tadashi, they're your friends, not mine. You watch. I'll just be out." He says nonchalantly, walking out the door. I want to stay and see what Honey's excited about, but Hiro's at the top of my list of priorities.

"Sorry Honey Lemon, I should go make sure Hiro's okay. He's been in an iffy mood since this morning." I say apologetically, heading to the door. "Brother Complex!" I hear them sing as I walk out. I shake my head. I do NOT have brother complex. They're just crazy.

Hiro's POV

I walked over to the bridge where Tadashi and I used to hang around as kids. I remember the days when we used to have picnics here with Aunt Cass. Sometimes Tadashi and I would sneak out after dark to sleep here, under it. It was one of the only times Tadashi would do something rule-breaking and it was pretty fun.

I go under the bridge and sit down. Grabbing a rock, I throw it past the river and it skips 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 times. I sigh and lay back, just looking at the cars pass by above me. Something about it just puts me in a relaxing mood.

"So, you want to tell me what's bothering you now?" I hear an all too familiar voice ask. I mentally roll my eyes. He never takes a hint does he? I just want to be alone. Is that too much to ask for? I calm myself, telling myself not to let my anger get the best of me like it has before.

"Tadashi, there's nothing to talk about. I just want to be alone for a while. Go back to the café and hang out with your friends." I say.

Tadashi's POV

Something's definitely wrong with Hiro, but he won't tell me what it is. I don't know how to help him if I can't tell what's bothering him. And the way he said the word 'friends' so bitterly made me shudder.

"Hiro, c'mon. We tell each other everything. Talk to me!" I plead. Hiro lets out a huff of breath. "Tadashi, I don't know what language to tell you this in, but I want to be alone. So just leave me alone!" he yells, looking away from me. "Hiro, you can usually answer any question within a few seconds. Why is it that this question scares you?" I ask softly. To my surprise, instead of looking sad, Hiro looks downright angry.

"Just quit it Tadashi. Stop trying to play the hero all the time. Give it a rest. I want to be alone and I don't know how many times I have to say it before it registers, but leave me alone. This isn't something you can help me with so just let it go." He spits.

"Well, we'll never know if you don't try." I press, not willing to leave him like this. Hiro doesn't say anything more.

"Alright, I'll make you a deal. I'll leave you alone if you come home with me." I offer. At least this way, I won't be worried that he's off alone doing something reckless. He still doesn't say anything. "Please Hiro. I just want to be sure you're safe." I say, trying to talk some sense into him. Hiro mumbles something incoherently. I think it sounded like "why can't he just leave." Or something along the lines of that.

I sigh and take my leave. Or do I? ;)

Hiro's POV

I finally hear Tadashi's footsteps leaving and I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding. I mean, how can Tadashi help me with this? It's a pathetic problem. I don't have any friends. I mean, I'm not exactly bullied or anything, but the kids aren't exactly nice either. I get weird looks all the time for being smart and it drives me nuts. That, and the only reason people talk to me is to ask me questions. Tadashi's literally the only friend I have. He likes me for me, not my brain.

None the less, I'm glad he's gone. I just need some alone time. I don't want to talk about it. I just want to relax, throw rocks, and relive simper times. I skip a rock 8 times and whistle in joy when I hear footsteps approach me. I get scared and reach for my phone in case I need to speed dial Tadashi.

To my surprise, it _is_ Tadashi. I twitch my eye. "What are you doing here?" I ask, teeth gritted. He places sleeping bags and pillows on the ground below.

"I left you alone for half an hour. I don't want you out this late, my friends left, and I won't say anything unless you ask me to." He says straightforwardly. I roll my eyes. Yeah, let's see how long that lasts.

Despite that my problems are still there, knowing Tadashi's here for me makes me happy. I see that he spread the sleeping bags pretty close to each other and Tadashi follows my gaze.

"I can move them if you want- I mean, I didn't think- if you don't like- I'm sorry, I'm talking out of line and I- "Tadashi, take a breather. It's fine." I cut in, smiling at his nervousness. He gives a bashful smile and lays into his sleeping bag.

I mirror actions and stare at him. He notices and starts to stare back. "Wanna talk now?" he asks, hopefully. I want to yell at him for ruining the pleasant moment, but I remember that he's just looking out for me and doing what he thinks is best.

"Tadashi, for the last time, it's not something you need to worry about. You can't help with this. Just let me deal with it on my own. You need to understand that despite what you promise me, there's going to be times when you just can't be there for me, I promise you you're doing enough for me. But this is something I gotta do myself, without you. I can handle it. I wouldn't do something if I knew I couldn't take it okay? You have to trust me." I say.

"You're right. I'm sorry. I just can't help but worry Hiro." He says.

"It's okay, I know all about your _brother complex_." I say extremely teasingly, causing him to flush a fresh sanguine. I laugh at his facial expression.

"Y-you heard that?!" he exclaims, extremely embarrassed. I nod cockily. "Yup. You're friends are pretty loud. But don't worry, I love you too big bro." I assure, patting his head playfully, holding back a loud eruption of giggles.

He pushes me playfully, but I guess he didn't predict his own strength because I go tumbling into the water. I pop back up to give him an irritated glare. He bursts out laughing and I get out of the water, dripping. I try to drag him into the water too, but he's too strong for me and I end up falling into the cold water again. I get out, shivering like crazy.

"N-not funny T-Tadashi." I say, teeth chattering. Tadashi's still laughing and I roll my eyes.

Wringing out my shirt and shorts, I climb into Tadashi's sleeping bag and he fidgets, trying to push me out. "Get out Hiro, this is a one person sleeping bag. That, and you're wet!" he cries. "Yeah, I noticed." I say, squirming my way in. He huffs, but lets me. I smile in satisfaction.  
>"God Hiro, you're freezing." He comments as I nuzzle into him for warmth. "Mhmm." I hum, drifting off. "Night." He says.<p>

"Night Dashi. I still like you, even with your brother complex." I say, laughing softly. He bonks me on the head, but I can almost _feel_ the smile on his face as we both drift off.

Guess Hiro's all too high and mighty to go to Tadashi for help this time.

Don't forget to review! Hope you enjoyed, enjoy, and continue to enjoy! !


	16. Chapter 16

Brothers

16

Ages (Change throughout this chapter) but in the beginning they are…

Hiro: 7

Tadashi: 10

Hiro's POV

"Whatcha workin on Dashi?" I asked. He had been writing and drawing like crazy in his notebook since this morning. "Just some robot stuff." He responded. I huff. "I knew that already! What _kind_ of robot stuff?" I whined. Dashi turned to face me and simply smiled. "You'll find out one day." He said, patting my head. I huffed again and crossed my arms. "C'mon Dashi!" I whined harder. Dashi sighed. "Fine. I guess it's not like you'll remember in a few days anyways. It's a robot I'm planning on building." He said, smiling.

I widened my eyes in wonder. Dashi rarely talks about building robots. He's afraid I'll get into botfighting or something.

"Really?" I ask in amazement. "Yup." He confirms. "What's it gonna do?" I ask curiously. "It's going to help people, namely you." He said, sounding proud. I cock my head to the side. "Me? Why would I need help? I got you don't I?" I ask, confused. Tadashi adjusts his hat, something he always does when he's nervous.

"Well little bro, it's like you once mentioned. I won't always be there for you. So this is a backup plan. This robot would take care of you." He explains gently. I feel panic rise in my body. "But Dashi, you promised me you weren't going anywhere anytime soon, remember?!" I cry, crushing him into a hug; afraid he might try to leave if I let go.

He pushes me away softly. "Whoa Hiro, clam down. I'm not going anywhere. It's just sometimes I might be busy with something or you may need me and I won't be there at the exact moment, so I'm gonna build this robot in case of those scenarios." He says, trying to calm me down. It's working as my heartrate goes back to normal.

"So when's it gonna be done?!" I ask excitedly. Tadashi's smile fades. "See, that's why I didn't want to bring him up. I didn't want you to get your hopes up. Sorry Hiro, but half the stuff I'd need to build him, I couldn't get ahold of until _college_." He said sadly. I frowned, but for Tadashi's sake decided not to look too upset.

"Don't sweat it Dashi. I still got you don't I?" I say gleefully. He messes up my hair and I huff. "You got that right bonehead. Seems like I'll be forever stuck with you." He says teasingly. "Hey!" I cry in protest, nudging Tadashi. He simply laughs.

"So whatcha gonna call him?" I ask curiously. "Baymax." He responds in a heartbeat. He sounded so confident about it. Almost as it were obvious. "Why?" I ask, wrinkling my nose. Tadashi shrugs. "I dunno, he looks like a Baymax, don't you think?" he asks me. "How should I know? He doesn't exist yet." I point out. Tadashi holds up his notebook to show me a sketch of him.

"That's what he's going to look like?" I ask, but regret it. Tadashi probably spent a long time on this and I just besmirched it. To my relief, he laughs at my comment.

"Yeah, I'm trying not to go for a threatening hunk of metal kinda look, you know." He says lightly. "I guess that makes sense, but shouldn't he have legs instead of wheels? I'd want it to look cute, not forced." I suggest. Tadashi puts a hand on his chin and looks over his sketch of baymax. It was chubby, white, friendly looking, and it had wobbly arms.

"You know what Hiro? That's actually a really good idea. I'm gonna do just that." He says, erasing the wheels and replacing them with legs equally as chubby as the arms. I laugh at how he made Baymax look and Tadashi bonks me on the head in response. Tadashi finally finishes sketching and closes his notebook. "Hey bonehead, we've been cooped up in this room all day and I'm sure you're bored to death. Wanna catch a movie?" he asks. I nod eagerly. "Yeah!" I say in joy, grabbing for my hoodie. I rush out of the room and wait by the front door. Then, I realize in my excitement, I forgot my shoes so I go back upstairs, but before I head into the room, I hear Tadashi talking to himself.

"One day buddy. When I can't be there to protect my baby bro, you will. I'm sure of it. I hope I can actually build you one day Baymax." I hear him say, putting his notebook into his desk drawer. I don't think there are words to describe what I felt with Tadashi's words.

Tadashi's POV

"So how's it feel to be a teenager?!" Hiro asks. "Not that different than from when I was twelve honestly." I respond. Hiro doesn't seem satisfied with my answer, but it's the truth.

"So, what have you been working on in the garage lately?" you like practically live there now. He says curiously. I feel myself get nervous. I hope he didn't go poking around there. I've been getting started on Baymax, but it's nowhere near even halfway done yet.

"I don't practically live there. I still sleep in our room." I defend. He rolls his eyes. "I had to wake you up one night because you fell asleep down there last week." He says accusingly. I blush a bit. Maybe I am spending too much time on Baymax. Ironic that I'm making him for Hiro, but I'm neglecting Hiro in the process.

"So?" Hiro asks impatiently. "Huh?" I ask, snapping out of my thoughts. "So what are you doing down there anyways? Building yourself a girlfriend?" he asks, laughing. I can't help but laugh at that too. "That was actually pretty funny, but let's be real Hiro. I can get any girl I wanted with this face." I say, showing my dimples off. "Whatever you say Dashi. So what are you really doing down there?" he asks, getting anxious.

"You'll find out someday." I say with a small smile. Figures he already forgot about that talk we had three years back about Baymax. I'm glad he doesn't remember. It's supposed to be a surprise. Hiro's about to fuss and beg me to tell him so I decide to change the topic. "Hey, you want some gummy bears?" I ask quickly. Hiro forgets all about my suspicious garage activities and jumps up at the idea.

"Yeah, let's go!" he says excitedly, grabbing my arm to drag me to the candy store. I shake my head. He's a crazy kid, but his hearts in the right place. At least I think it is.

Normal POV

"And guess who's late again." Aunt Cass said dejectedly. Hiro put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry Aunt Cass. He doesn't do it on purpose. College is probably just wearing him out, ya know?" the younger brother suggested. Aunt Cass was not comforted by this greatly, but hugged Hiro for trying anyway.

"Thanks little man. Do me a favor and put the leftovers in the fridge will ya kiddo?" she asks. "Sure Aunt Cass." He responded.

Hiro put the food into the fridge and snagged a cookie out of the jar to snack on while he waited for Tadashi. As if on cue, the older Hamada walked through the door, bags under his eyes. He looked as if he hadn't slept in days.

"Tadashi, I know you're really mesmerized by all the crazy magical stuff they have in college, but you really should make an effort to come home once in a while for dinner. Aunt Cass's is being really negatively affected by all this if you haven't noticed." Hiro said, chomping on his cookie.

"Right, that's perfect. Thanks Wasabi." Tadashi said, half asleep. Hiro sweat dropped. "Maybe you're too tired to have a conversation." Hiro mused.

"Yeah, I already calibrated those Gogo, but thanks." Tadashi said in his sleepwalking daze. Hiro laughed. "This is pretty funny.

"Hey Tadashi, I'm in love with you." He said in a voice that resembled Honey Lemon's. Tadashi smiled dreamily. "Really?" he asked in happiness. Hiro burst out laughing. "C'mon college boy, you need to sleep." Hiro said, more to himself than to Tadashi.

The younger brother pushed the older one up the stairs and into his bed. "I don't know what you're doing in that crazy school, but it better be worth it if you're losing this much sleep bro." Hiro said, walking to his own bed.

"How's it feel to be senior little bro?" Tadashi asked. Hiro shrugged. "Not much different from a junior, sophomore, or freshman really." Was his nonchalant response. "I can't believe you're gonna graduate in just a few months!" Tadashi exclaimed excitedly. Hiro shrugged.

"Yeah that's exciting and stuff, but what about you? You're in your second year of college, but you haven't even built anything yet. What are you waiting for?" the younger brother asked anxiously. Tadashi turned nervous.

To the older brother, it seemed as though Baymax would never get done. So many complications kept arising. Malfunctions in programming, structure, and more. He had been working on the plush nurse bot for what seemed like forever now. He really wanted to show Hiro his work and have him be impressed, but an unfinished robot wouldn't suffice. Tadashi wanted Hiro to be blown away from what he could do at SFIT.

"I…" Tadashi said, trailing off. Hiro slumped his shoulders. "Hey, it's fine if you're too busy to show me or whatever. It's just, I bet your friends know about what you build; shouldn't I know too?" Hiro asked, sounding hurt. "Wow Hiro. It's not like that at all. I just don't want to show it to you until it's done. You're gonna be blown away by it, I promise." The older brother assured. Hiro's hopes seemed to be lifted by this statement to Tadashi's relief.

"Are you ready for the presentation Tadashi?" Aunt Cass asked. Tadashi nodded eagerly.

There was a special program going on for the science majors tonight and Tadashi was asked to present something for it. Everyone was excited for it. Aunt Cass because she was an eager person. Hiro because he would FINALLY see what his brother could really do. And Tadashi because he was going to show his family what SFIT was like.

"Can't wait to see what you've been working on this whole time." Hiro said, nudging Tadashi with a huge grin. Tadashi smiled back. "Well, you're gonna have to wait a little longer bonehead, I'm not going to present that at the event." Tadashi said with a smirk. Hiro looked to Tadashi in disbelief. "Why not?" he asked. "I'm going to show it to just you when we get back home." Tadashi said with a wink. Hiro grumbled, but was secretly extremely honored that Tadashi chose to show him and him only first.

"Aw, don't be like that bonehead. I'm sure it'll lift your spirits when you see it. I think you'll be majorly impressed." He said smugly. Hiro was really looking forward to it already. He'd been waiting YEARS for this moment.

After the presentation, Tadashi said he'd take Hiro for ice cream while Aunt Cass headed home.

Hiro pouted as both brother's walked out of the school. "You really want me to suffer don't you? Waiting forever to see your dang project." Hiro said in mock anger. Tadashi chuckled. "Just trying to build up suspense little bro." was his response.

Before they could leave campus grounds, they felt a vibration. It was so powerful, Hiro almost fell down. Both brothers looked at each other and ran toward the explosion. Both bothers came to the scene only to see a horrible fire breaking out of the school.

"C'mon Tadashi, we can't just stand here. Call the fire department!" Hiro urged. Tadashi shook his head. "Someone's bound to have done that by now, we have to take action now!" he exclaimed, Running into the building. Hiro shook his head. "This is crazy." Hiro said to no one in particular, running into the building as well.

Hiro and Tadashi managed to get about 15 people out before they saw that the fire was getting unstable. Hiro stopped himself from going back in, but Tadashi showed no signs of quitting. Luckily, Hiro stopped him from running back in.

"Tadashi, be sensible. This fire's way to unstable now. The building could collapse at any given moment." Hiro reasoned. "There's still innocent people trapped in there." Tadashi protested. Hiro grabbed Tadashi's arm. "Tadashi, we helped as many as we could. We need to leave it to the firefighters now." Hiro reasoned once more. "No Hiro, they're taking too long. A little girl is still in there." The older one said stubbornly, trying to pry his arm away from Hiro.

"Dashi please. I can't lose you!" Hiro pleaded, down on his knees. Tadashi contemplated staying, but his better judgment told him to go save the last person in that building. He shrugged away from Hiro's death grip and raced into the building. Hiro couldn't believe it. As soon as Tadashi disappeared from his line of sight, he heard fire trucks come.

Hiro was close to tears when he thankfully found Tadashi coming out. His heart swelled with hope and happiness, thankful beyond belief that Tadashi was okay. He had the little girl in his arms, unconscious and was running back.

Then, as if time slowed down, Hiro saw a thick piece of the building fall right above Tadashi. The older Hamada saw it coming and threw the little girl in Hiro's direction, but the millisecond after, the chunk of burning architecture made direct contact with the older boy's body and he fell down. Hiro ignored the girl and raced to where Tadashi was.

"Dashi?! Dashi?!" he cried, trying to get the piece of the wall off of his brother frantically. The firefighter came and pried it off with his fireproof gloves. Hiro stared down at Tadashi and hugged his burned form. "Dashi, you're gonna be alright. You have to be. You can't leave me. Not now. You can't!" Hiro cried in sadness. A few minutes passed and Tadashi didn't come to.

"DASHI! DASHI WAKE UP RIGHT NOW! THIS IS NOT FUNNY. GET UP. PLEASE GET UP. GOD DAMMIT GET UP DASHI!" Hiro demanded. When Tadashi remained unresponsive, Hiro's eyes welled with tears and poured down, making contact with Tadashi's lifeless body.

Hiro sniffled and hugged Tadashi's body even closer. "Nii-chan. You promised. You promised you wouldn't leave, and you even promised that you wouldn't make promises you couldn't keep, but you did. Nii-chan, why'd you leave me?" Hiro asked, almost pleading with Tadashi's body. Whispering continuously. "Why Nii-saan. Why?!" he whisper cried.

Hiro lay in his bed. Solemn. Alone. Brotherless. It had been two weeks since Tadashi had passed away in that building. Thanks to him and Hiro, all the people that were trapped in the building were saved. He was the only one to lose his life. Hiro couldn't believe Tadashi was gone.

"He promised. He promised that he wouldn't leave me, but he did anyway." Hiro whispered softly to himself. It hurt like crazy to know Tadashi wasn't there to bounce ideas off of. To make funny jokes with. To ask pointless questions with. To mourn about his parents with. To comfort him when he had nightmares (Not that they happened anymore, but still).

Hiro sighed and spread his arms and legs out on his bed. "They say Tadashi's not really gone as long as we remember him, but that doesn't get rid of the pain." Hiro said to himself again. The fourteen year old genius got out of bed and looked around his room. His room. His _own _room. He didn't share it with anyone anymore. He let that sink in.

Mochi suddenly came into the room. Hiro picked up the tubby cat and pet it behind the ears, causing it to purr in satisfaction. Hiro sighed once more. "I wonder what it was like for you to leave your family Mochi. Now we have one thing in common. We're a broken family. But I guess we still have each other." Hiro whispered to the cat. The cat meowed in response, causing Hiro to crack a light smile.

Suddenly, without any warning whatsoever, Mochi scratched Hiro on the arm and scampered away in a flash, causing the boy to yelp in pain. "OW! Mochi, what was that for!" he cried to the cat, but it was long gone.

"Ow. He got me good." Hiro said, inspecting his arm, which was beginning to bleed. Then, a beeping sound was heard followed by a somewhat inflating sound. Hiro looked up in alarm.

Hiro's POV 

Some weird balloon thing just came out of nowhere from Tadashi's old side of the room, scaring me a bit. I squinted and couldn't help but feel like I had seen this somewhere before. It waddled over to me awkwardly and waved in an attempt to seem friendly I guess. It was so chubby and plush. I couldn't place why or where, but I really felt like I knew him from somewhere.

"Hello, I am Baymax. Your personal healthcare companion. I was awoken by your call of distress. On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate your pain?" it asked, monotone. I blinked. Baymax? Why did this look and sound so familiar. It seemed surreal, but I none the less responded to the balloon bot. "Uh, a two?" I said uncertainly. Baymax nodded. "Alright, I will proceed to scan you now." It said, looking me up and down.

"Scan?" I questioned. "Yes, scan. It is imperative that I scan my patient for signs of injury. My scanners indicate that you not only feel physical pain, but emotional as well. I will relieve the physical first as that is what I was programmed to do." Baymax said, pulling out an antiseptic from who knows where. I watched in silence as the robot tended to my arm injury.

After Baymax did his thing, he pulled out a cherry lollipop. "This is your reward for being a good boy." Baymax said, patting my head. I accepted the lollipop and popped it into my mouth. "You've got some sick programming." I mused, observing the robot in wonder. Hyperspectral cameras that can scan a human? Pretty impressive.

"My programming is not sick Hiro. Tadashi made sure I was fully functional before bringing me out of his lab. He was very excited for you to see me." Baymax said. I flinched at his words. "Of course! Baymax!" I cried in surprise. Baymax blinked. "I am confused." He said, monotone. "Wait a sec." I say, digging through a box containing stuff from when I was younger.

I found what I was looking for and almost cried in happiness. A picture I drew of Baymax when I was 7. I remembered Tadashi telling me about Baymax all those years ago, claiming that I wouldn't remember it later so there was no harm in telling me then. But my brain had other ideas. I drew a sketch of Baymax based on what Tadashi had in his notebook, telling myself I wouldn't forget. I looked at Baymax again, only this time, from a fresh perspective.

"It appears your functional fixedness has come into play. You remember me?" Baymax asked. "Yeah." I said in wonder. I noticed an access port on Baymax and opened it, revealing a chip in Baymax. The words 'Tadashi Hamada' were sprawled onto it, with a little nurse picture etched into it. I smiled and closed the access port.

"I was wrong. Tadashi will always be there for me." I thought, hugging Baymax tightly. He hugged back, though a bit stiffly.

"Love you Nii-San." I whispered to myself.

God, I really didn't want to kill Tadashi in this chapter, but I had to in order to emphasize Baymax's impact on Hiro. SORRRRRYYYY. I personally am one of the people that think up of theories as to how Tadashi is still alive despite the fire, but he's just dead in this chapter. Anyways, review away!


	17. Chapter 17

Brothers

17

Ages

Hiro: 2

Tadashi: 7

Tadashi's POV

C'mon little guy, try again. Say Ta-Da-Shi." I say, sounding out each syllable carefully. My baby brother Hiro keeps his thumb in his mouth and attempts to say my name again.

"Tashi." He says, getting frustrated that he can't say it right. I smile at his try. "C'mon buddy, try once more time." I urge. "Tadashi." I say.

"Dashi!" Hiro exclaims victoriously. He seems so darn happy that he said 'Dashi' he yanks his thumb out of his mouth and starts a mini victory dance. I laugh at him. I guess he's dubbed me 'Dashi' for now.

"Close enough little Hiro." I say, dancing along with him. Apparently, I'm not dancing right because of Hiro's comment. "No Dashi! Like me!" He cries, gesturing me to dance identical to him. I try to copy him, but Hiro gets upset and sits on the floor.

Sometimes, it's a pain to have to do things Hiro's way ALL the time, but I have to remind myself that he's only two and doesn't understand fairness yet, so I try to be patient.

"Hey Hiro, why don't we dance together?" I suggest. Hiro looks up at me from his crouched position on the floor. Fortunately for me, he looks happy at my recommendation and his eyes light up. Eagerly, he gets up and grabs my hands and begins spinning around.

"Wow Hiro, slow down. I'm gonna puke!" I cry in mock fear. In actuality, he's going at a rate that could maybe rival a snail. _Maybe_.

He laughs none the less. Eventually he gets dizzy and we collapse to the floor. "Dashi. Nap. Now." Hiro announces, beginning to doze off. I chuckle at him. "Night you crazy demon child." I say playfully, patting his hair. He lightly squirms at the touch, but relaxes after a while.

"Awwww, look at you two!" I hear mom say behind me, camera in hand. I blush a bright crimson and give her a look of pleading. "Moooooom. That's so embarrassing. Delete that. Please?!" I beg on my knees. Mom shakes her head and doesn't lose the cheesy grin from her face.

I start chasing mom around the house, but she's surprisingly faster than me. "Honey, catch!" Mom cried, tossing the camera to dad. I groan in frustration. "Guysssss." I whine childishly. "Oh hush Tadashi. There's nothing to be ashamed about loving your brother. Now go pick him up and take him to his room while I record it all." Mom urged. I cross my arms. "No way." I say firmly. Mom gives me the look and I gulp, eyes widening.

"I-I mean, I'll go do that right now." I say, hiding my face beneath my hat. "That's what I thought you said." She says, hands on hips. "I have yet to figure out how you do that." Dad said to mom as I left.

I head back to the living room to see Hiro completely knocked out on the rug. That little spinning dance must've really worn the poor sucker out. I scoop him into my arms gently (gosh he weighs like 0 pounds).

I can practically feel the camera on me as mom films this and I roll my eyes. None the less, I carry Hiro to his room and lay him in his bed softly, careful not to wake him up. He shifts a bit around in his bed, but thankfully doesn't wake up. I'm about to leave when I hear his half-asleep voice ask "Mommy, will you stay with me?"

I blushed again. He thinks I'm mom?! I'm so offended. She looks nothing like me. I got my looks from Dad. I want to give Hiro a piece of my mind, but decided against it. For one thing, he's half asleep. Another thing, he's only two. Gosh that excuse comes up a lot.

Just then, mom pops her head into the room and smiles like a maniac. "Oh this is great Tadashi. Go on, lay down with him. This is beyond adorable." She gushes. I look at her in disbelief. "You can't possibly be serious can you?" I ask. She gives me a dead serious look and I bury my face in my hands. "Mom please. This is degrading. There is no way I'll sleep in Hiro's bed with him. I'm seven years old. You said yourself I'm a big boy." I say, puffing out my chest in an attempt to look older.

"Tadashi, part of being older means being an older brother. You need to be there for Hiro when he needs you." Mom explains. I sigh, mulling it over. "Okay, that makes sense, but he said Mom, not Tadashi." I reason. Mom sighs and looks less than pleased with my response. "Please do this Tadashi? Please? For mommy? I mean, there may be times when I'm busy and he'll have no one to turn to but you. This is good practice." Mom pressed.

I give in and tell her I'll do it on one condition; she CANNOT film it. She reluctantly complies and leaves the room. I look at Hiro in mild distaste. Don't get me wrong, I love my baby bro. I just hate getting all sentimental with him. Most siblings don't get along well and the fact that me and Hiro do make me an easy target for being made fun of in public by other kids. If people find out I do this kind of stuff for my brother, I'd never hear the end of it.

I mock glare at him. "Why can't you sleep by yourself?" I ask him in a whisper. Hiro gurgles out a sloppy and almost inaudible response that sounded like "Nightmares. Gummy bears. Gone." I shook my head and lay down next to him gently.

Hoping he'll ignore my presence, I stay. No such luck. Hiro fidgets way too much in his sleep and feels my hand. He pulls it close to him and uses it as a makeshift stuffed toy. I don't mind it, so I don't react.

A few minutes later, Hiro moves around again. This time, his head winds up on my stomach and his legs dangling off of the bed. I silently laugh at his odd position. Then, before I can get used to his posture this way, he changes positions. This time, his entire body is laying on top of me. For some reason, it starts tickling me so I laugh.

He's so small and cute sometimes. Too much for his own good really. He nuzzles into my chest and it tickles like crazy and I can't help but burst out laughing. I accidently woke up Hiro in the process and I guess I must've scared the poor guy because he begins wailing uncontrollably. I panic, but hold Hiro close to me in an attempt to call him down.

"Shh, Otuoto, you're okay. You're fine. It's me. I'm sorry. I didn't meant to startle you. Shhh. Calm down." I say soothingly. He wipes his tears away and blinks. "D-Dashi?" He asks in confusion. I nod, glad he stopped crying.

"You not mommy." He points out. "Yeah, she's busy so I'm here." I tell him. Hiro shrugs, sticks his thumb into his mouth and crashes his head onto my chest; resuming slumber. I try my hardest not to laugh at his mess of hair poking at me, causing it to tickle me. I smile, getting a little tired myself.

"Mom, can you help me with my homework? This is kind of hard." I say nervously. I hate admitting that I don't understand something and mom knows it. I'm in the gifted and talented program for crying out loud. I shouldn't need help, but this is impossible.

"I'd love to Tadashi, but I'm a bit caught up in the kitchen, do you mind asking your father? I'm sorry." She says. "Yeah, no problem." I respond, getting my stuff and heading into the office room.

"Hey dad I- Wait Hiro?" I ask, confused. My two year old baby brother looks up at me wide eyed and backs up from whatever it is he's doing in here.

"What are you doing in here?" I ask. He sticks his thumb in his mouth, something he did quite frequently. Shifting his doe eyes from left to right, he lets out a "Looking for daddy." And starts waddling away adorably. I'm not convinced. His cuteness might be swallowed up by mom and dad, but I'm a little tougher to crack than this.

I pick him up and he immediately begin squirming. "Dashi! DOWN!" He whines loudly, fidgeting like a madman. I'm shocked to say the least.

"Hiro, I'm not mad. I just want to know what you're doing in here. He stops fidgeting to cross him arms in a pout. "Not tellin." He says stubbornly. I can tell he's trying to look mad, but honestly it comes out as pretty cute.

"Alright. I'm going to put you down now. When I do, don't run away okay?" I ask cautiously. Hiro nods, but doesn't face me. I place him down and no more than a second after I do, he bolts out of the office like it's on fire. "Unbelievable." I say, shaking my head. "Whatever, I guess I should find dad." I say to myself.

I'm about to leave, when something catches my eye. Something shiny poking out of the closet. Curious, I walk toward it. I open the door and almost faint from it all. Metal. Lots of it. Anywhere and everywhere. Right in the middle of the spare parts an unfinished robot. It's pretty odd looking, but I pick it up and observe. "Why would dad be making a tiny robot thing?" I muse.

'Guess that's his guilty pleasure or something.' I think to myself.

Finally, I find dad in the family room. "Hey dad, can you help me?" I ask. He looks tired and I feel kind of bad for asking him. He was probably busy. "Son, I'd honestly love to, but Hiro just came out of nowhere saying he had to go to the store so I'm a bit tied up here." He replied.

Well that's just great. NOT.

"Whatever, it's cool dad." I reply, being slightly okay with it. What on earth was that child up to anyway?

Dad looks apologetic, but pats my head in an attempt to make me feel better. "Hey, since you're being so cool about it, I'll bring you back a little something, huh?" He asks. I smile. Classic dad. Bribing the child. "Yeah sure dad. Thanks." I say.

I head up to my room and see none other than Hiro there, reading one of my books. I quickly close the door and he jumps in alarm. He widens his eyes, startled by my presence in _my_ room. "Alright that's it little guy, what are you doing?" I demand. He panics and starts sobbing, something he ALWAYS did to get out of trouble.

"Not gonna work this time Hiro. I know you're fake crying. You can't fool me. I practically invented that trick. Hiro's tears fade and he wipes his eyes and gives me a bored expression. "Fine, but I still not tellin." Hiro says firmly.

"Hiro c'mon. You're in my room. I have a right to know. Besides, shouldn't you be going to the store with dad?" I question. "No, he bring it to me." He says. "Brings what?" I ask. He shrugs and heads to the door. This time I grab him and throw him onto my bed. He lands with a thump.

"Dashi NO!" He whines, trying to get down with no avail. My bed's too high for him to climb off of and it's frustrating him. I ignore his whining and reach for the book he was reading.

"Robotics Basics? Hiro why are you reading this? I never even read it. Mom and dad it was boring adult stuff." I ask, puzzled. Hiro refused to meet my gaze. I can tell he's less than pleased.

"Wait a second. Hiro, back in the office, were you building something?" I ask him. No response. A thought strikes me at lightning speed. "OH my gosh. That thing in the closet. Don't tell me YOU did that?!" I ask in wonder. That would make more sense. I mean, what would dad be doing with a robot in the first place?

"Dashi no." He simply says quietly. "Don't tell mommy and daddy." He begs, sitting on the very edge of the bed. I sit on the bed next to him. "Why not Hiro? This is amazing." I say. He shakes his head furiously. "They gonna make me do more stuff. Nerd stuff. Like you." Hiro says.

"What's wrong with that? It pushes you. Makes you smarter. Don't you want that?" I ask.

"What if I not smart nuff? I no even talk right." Hiro says frustratingly. "I no even say your name. Dashi. No Tashi. No, I can't." Hiro says in frustration.

"Hiro, you're only TWO. What you can do is beyond impressive. You can READ. You can hold a conversation. Sure, you can't form proper sentences, but you can communicate and I always understand what you're saying. That's pretty smart to me." I assure him. He looks at me nervously. "Really?" He asks uncertainly. "Definitely." I respond. He noticeable perks up. "Then I read more of your books?" He asks eagerly. I chuckle. "Knock yourself out genius." I say, gently lifting him to the ground.

He rushes to my bookshelf and shoves two books from the bottom shelf. He's trying to get one from the one above it, but he's too short and he's getting aggravated. I walk to him and reach for it, but he stops me. "No Dashi. I do it myself." He states, going on his tippy toes. I amusingly watch him grab for it to no avail. "Hiro, you sure you don't want help?" I ask. He has a look of sheer determination on his face, which answered my question.

Then, he leaved my room. I look at his retreating form in amusement. Giving up in 30 seconds. Washed up at two years old. So sad. Or maybe not. He comes back with a stepladder and more determination. He steps on the stepladder, but is still too short. Refusing to give in to asking for help, he jumps up as high as he can. Now, he did get the book he was aiming for, but he managed to knock five other books down with him.

He went tumbling to the floor in a jumbled mess, all five books smacking into him before I could stop them. I gasp in horror at how much pain Hiro must be in and hurriedly pull the books off of him.

He's covered his face with his hands and is on his knees. "Hiro?" I ask cautiously. He slowly looks up at me with an embarrassed expression. "Is bad?" He asks, pointing at his forehead. A nasty bump has formed and is swelling badly. "Uh, No. you're gonna be just fine little guy. Stay here, I'm going to go get an ice pack." I say, rushing out of the room.

I grab some ice from the freezer and shove them into a zip lock bag. "Tadashi, what happened? I heard a bang." Mom asked. I chuckle nervously. "Psh, nothing. Just rearranging books and some got knocked over." I respond, running back to my room.

Hiro's touching his bump softly. Poking it here and there to see how bad it is. "Don't do that." I advise him, pressing the ice pack to his face. "You okay?" I ask. "Yeah, I fine." He says, leaning into the ice pack more. "That feel good?" I ask. He nods contently. "Thanks." He says.

"Is it still hurting?" I ask. "A bit. But not nuff to make me cry. I stronger than a book." He says defensively. I laugh because it looked and sounded adorable. He gets self-cautious and punches me in the shoulder. "Relax Hiro. Five heavy books crashed into you. I wouldn't judge. Besides, I'm impressed that you aren't crying." I say innocently.

"Yeah. I hate being short. When Imma be tall like you?" He asks. "You'll grow at your own rate sport." I say knowingly. He pouts and crosses his arms.

"Gosh Hiro, for a little boy, you've got a BIG attitude." I joke. He cracks a smile against his own will, causing me to feel really happy. I'm good at getting Hiro out of sour moods.

"Dashi, you hate me." Hiro suddenly says out of nowhere. "I think you meant that as a question didn't you? I just heard wrong right?" I ask. "No. you hate me." Hiro states, pulling away from the ice pack slowly. I feel a bit hurt at his words. Was I that bad a brother?

"Hiro, why would you say that? Did I do something?" I ask. Hiro looks away. "I hear you ask mommy and daddy for help. I was gonna tell daddy my thing could wait, but it was too late; he left for store. I swear dashi! I'm sorry!" He claimed, looking away from me. "Whoa calm down Hiro. It's okay. I'm not mad at you. That's not your fault. I'm not mad. See." I say, smiling obnoxiously big on purpose. Hiro giggles at my face.

"Dashi, you're really silly." He says. "Yeah yeah, how's your head?" I ask with a laugh. He touches it, but I guess he pressed too hard because he winced and I saw a tear poke out of his left eye. "Careful." I say, leaning toward him. He's hesitant, but he lets me observe the bump. It's turned a clammy color. Like a mix of purple and gray, but there's no bleeding so I don't get too worried.

Carefully and ever so gently, I lightly brush my finger past it and check to see Hiro's reaction. Not even a blink. That's good. I was worried that he was badly injured for a second.

"Alright buddy. You seem fine, so let's NOT tell mom and dad about this okay?" I ask. Hiro cocks his head to the side in confusion. "Why not? They say to always tell them if we get hurt." Hiro says.

I smile at the fact that his sentence was grammatically correct.

"Well, you like secrets don't you?" I ask him slyly. He nods eagerly. "Well, this can be our little secret. Something that only you and I know. Mom and dad never have to find out." I say convincingly. "Okay, I no tell." He says in a voice that I guess he assumed was sneaky. "Good, now here's your book." I say, giving him the one he was reaching for from before. Then I grab the other five and place them back on the top shelf. "Sorry for knocking books down your shelf Dashi." Hiro says innocently. "No problem. Sorry your head had to pay the price." I say.

I walk to my bed and try to make heads or tails out of my homework while Hiro reads his book on my floor. A few minutes later, I hear scratching on my bedframe. I look down to see Hiro trying to climb up. His smallish fingers and legs mock his tries. I hold back a laugh and put a hand to my chin. "Alright there Hiro?" I ask. He blushes and pouts.

"Dashi. Up." He commands, stretching his arms up. I hoist him up and place him in the middle of my bed. "Can I help you?" I ask teasingly. He holds his book up in response. "What this word is?" He asks, pointing to a page. "Crania." I read. "What means?" he asks. "It's like the head or crown of someone. It has to do with the brain I think." I explain. His eyes light up in realization and he continues to zoom through the pages.

I still can't figure out this stupid homework so I groan and lay down on my bed, careful to avoid Hiro. The little munchkin puts his head on my stomach and relaxes, continuing his book. I doze off unknowingly.

When I wake up again, Hiro's gone along with my book. "Guess he got bored." I muse. I see my homework and whine like a baby. I'm getting so sick of the stupid pre-algebraic equations and my brain can't handle it right now. Then, I see it. There's something written on my paper. I lean in closer and almost fall off of my bed from what I see.

All of it's done. The entire homework assignment is finished. The equations are solved with work shown everywhere. I blink and look at it again, not able to believe what I'm seeing. "Did Hiro do this?" I wonder. I hop off my bed and race to Hiro's room. He's almost done with the book.

"Hiro, did you do my homework for me?" I ask. He looks up, closing his book. "Yeah. It was easy." He responds, a bored expression playing on his face.

Unbelievable. The two year old was a flipping genius. Solving equations even I couldn't solve. TWO. Only 24 months into his life and he was way smarter than me. Ridiculous.

"Do you think you could explain it to me?" I ask sheepishly. Hiro shrugs. "I don't see why not. Oh, and I hope you don't mind, but I read a few other books on your shelf too. Just so my talking wouldn't be so babyish. Do I sound older?" Hiro asked, hope filling his big brown eyes. I marvel at him.

He's going to do great things. Such a bright little kid.

"Hiro, I honestly don't think I could be more proud than I am right now." I say in complete and utter honesty. Hiro beams at my answer and flashes me a toothless smile.

He actually has a few teeth in already, but the top two he's got left a gap in his mouth. Dad thinks we ought to get it fixed, but mom insists it's adorable. I shockingly agreed with her on that one. It made him look more adorable.

"Well, let's teach you pre-algebra." Hiro says, dragging me into my room. I chuckle at him. My brother. Hopefully, he'll be a legend someday. With his kind of brain, he better be.

I'm so sorry that my stories are getting crappier by the chapter. I don't know what to do, but this is what I got. Sorry if you hated it, but hey, I tried. We can't all be geniuses like Hiro. Anyways, review this or whatever.


	18. Chapter 18

Brothers

18

Ages

Hiro: 6

Tadashi: 12

Hiro's POV

"Please Aunt Cass. I'd do everything for it." I plead, hoping to get her to say yes. Aunt Cass wagged her finger. "Say what you want Hiro, but we are NOT getting a dog and that's final." She said firmly. I glare at her, but she doesn't faze. "Ugh fine Aunt Cass. How about a bird? A parrot?!" I ask eagerly. "Hiro, what suddenly got you wanting a pet so bad anyway?" Aunt Cass asked.

"I'm lonely." I say in an overly sad voice, hoping to win her over. She isn't amused. "You have me and Tadashi." She retaliates. "Psh, Tadashi's got a project to do for math and is too 'busy' for me." I scoff. "Well he won't be working on it forever." She says. "And if you're that bored, I'll hang out with you." She offers. I slouch my shoulders.

Guess that means no bird. She already said no to a snake, dog, spider, and turtle.

"Geez Aunt Cass, as appealing as that sounds, I was about to go the park anyways. Sorry." I say in a sarcastic tone. She rolls her eyes. "Alright, just don't be out too long or I'll send Tadashi after you." She warns. "Psh, he'll probably come look for me on his own. That guy is WAY too protective." I murmur, earning a raised eyebrow from Aunt Cass. "I mean, alright bye!" I call, running out the door.

As I walk to the park, I kick a can I came upon on my way. Hands in pockets, I groan and kick it harder. I really want a dog. Aunt Cass doesn't even have a valid reason not to buy one. She just doesn't want to see me happy.

When I get to the park, I see so many people walking their dogs and I can't help but feel jealous. It must be great. You can teach them tricks, play with them, and they love you like crazy.

I walk over to a woman on one of the benches. She's got a huge golden retriever and is feeding it something. "Can I pet him?" I ask hopefully. The lady smiles. "Go for it. It's a her by the way." She says politely. I smile even wider and pet the dog like crazy. Its tongue poked out and it pants like crazy

"What's her name?" I ask.  
>"Star." She responds. "She really seems to like you." The lady muses.<p>

"Hey, you want to make ten bucks real quick?" She asks me. I get confused at the random question, but none the less look at her expectantly.

"If you walk Star around the park once I'll pay you ten dollars." She offers. I brighten at the suggestion. "Getting to spend time with a dog and get PAID for it? You got yourself a deal!" I say in joy. The lady giggles and hands me Star's collar. "Alright be careful now. I'll just be here." She says. I nod and carefully take the collar from her.

"Let's go." I say to Star, whose tail wags up in glee. While we're walking, I hear footsteps come toward us. Well, Star hears them and turns around and _then_ I hear them too. I groan and shake my head.

"Tadashi, what are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be working on your project?" I ask. "I finally finished and Aunt Cass told me you were here. I got worried." He says. I roll my eyes. "When do you not worry?" I question. He looks apologetic. "Sorry Hiro. Can't help it. So where'd the dog come from?" He asks.

"Some lady said she'd give me 10 bucks for walking her." I say proudly. Tadashi looks a little less than pleased. "Hiro, I don't want you talking to strangers like that." Tadashi says, getting concerned. "C'mon Tadashi. I've seen her before. She's come to the café before." I say, trying to get him to lose the overprotective demeanor. No such luck.

"Yeah, but honestly, I don't want you coming to the park alone either. Get Aunt Cass or me to come with you." He says. I look at him as if he's joking. "Go on." I say. "What?" He asks in confusion. "Tell me that was a joke and I'll still laugh." I say. Tadashi looks displeased. "Hiro I mean it. It's not safe for a little guy like you to be walking through the streets of San Fransokyo all alone." He says.

"Tadashi c'mon. Nothing's gonna happen. You make sure of that." I say, muttering the last part. Tadashi frowns at me. "What's the problem in getting me or Aunt Cass to come along?" He asks. "Nothing, it's just that sometimes you guys are busy, and I'm not just gonna sit at home all bored." I defend. He doesn't look convinced.

I'm about to blow up on him for the fact that Aunt Cass lets me go on my own and so he should too; but then, an idea hit me. I smirk in victory. There's no way I'll lose the argument this time.

"You know Tadashi, if we had a dog, I could take it with me and then I wouldn't be alone." I say as innocently as I can manage. Tadashi gives me a sideways glance. "A dog? You want a dog?" he asked. "Yup. For protection purposes of course. You know, it can be a guard dog. So you don't worry so much." I say. I see him thinking about it.

I got this in the bag. If I can push his buttons the right way, Tadashi will definitely be on my side and somehow convince Aunt Cass to get me a dog.

"I don't know Hiro. Dogs are a lot of work. I've got school to worry about and Aunt Cass has the café." He says. "Yeah, but I'm free. I got this Tadashi. I can totally take care of it. Please?" I ask. "Hiro I'm not sure you can handle it." He says uncertainly. "Well we'll never know until we try." I say, using the same words he uses on me when I have a problem I don't want to talk about. I can see he's really thinking hard on this one. I bite my lip and bring out my ultimate weapon.

"Please Dashi?! I'll take super good care of it. And you'll be happy knowing I'm safe! It's a win-win situation. Please?!" I beg, pulling a puppy face. He sighs. "Oh alright. What's the harm? I'll talk to Aunt Cass." He says with a light smile. I jump up in happiness and tackle Tadashi in a hug. "You're the best brother in the world!" I exclaim. He gets embarrassed and pulls me off of him. "Yeah yeah. Now grab that dog's leash before it runs away." He says with a laugh.

I widen my eyes in remembrance of Star. I grab the leash and continue to walk her, Tadashi right behind me.

"So what brought on this whole 'I want a dog' thing?" He questions as we walk. "Oh you know, it'll keep me safe." I say simply. He raises an eyebrow. "What was the_real_ reason? The one you had before you tried to convince me." He says knowingly. I smile sheepishly at the fact that he saw right through me.

"Well, why wouldn't I want a dog is the real question. It'll be great. I man c'mon. Who wouldn't want a dog? Well, besides Aunt Cass." I say. "I guess that makes sense. So would you want a boy or a girl?" He asks me. "Boy for sure. His name could be something awesome like Shredder or Rip-jaw." I say enthusiastically. "Or Baymax." Tadashi says thoughtfully.

I wrinkle my nose. "Baymax? What kind of name is that?" I ask. Tadashi's cheeks grow a slight pink color. "It was just a suggestion. You didn't have to take it." He says defensively.

I ignore the weird name he gave and continue to walk Star. When we finish our round around the park, I return Star to the lady and she gives me ten bucks as promised.

"Alright, let's go home." Tadashi says, reaching for my hand like he always does. I halfheartedly let him. "As soon as we get home you'll talk to Aunt Cass right?" I ask eagerly. He chuckles. "Yeah little guy. I will. Don't worry." He says. I smile and start running toward the bakery.

"OH alright!" Aunt Cass cried in frustration. "Hiro can have a 'guard' dog as long as he takes care of it, doesn't scare customers away, and doesn't get in my way." Aunt Cass agreed. I shouted in victory.  
>"YES! I'm getting a dog!" I say, fist pumping Tadashi.<p>

I drag my older brother out of the bakery and practically shove him in the direction of the pet store. He yanks his arm back and laughs.

"Relax Hiro. The pet store isn't going anywhere." He says with a smile. I blush bashfully and continue walking. "I know that, but I really want my dog Dashi." I say. I can see his face brighten at the nickname and he follows me.

We make it to the pet store and Tadashi opens the door, making a ding sound as we enter.

"Welcome to Pets and more. How may we help you?" a man asked with a smile. I look at him in confusion. "We?" I question. The man's smile fades as he looks around for someone. "Where is that girl?" He mutters, then faces us again. "Oh sorry. It's just that my daughter promised she'd help me out today." He said apologetically.

Then we a girl approach us. She's pretty tall and has a mega-watt smile. "Welcome to pets and more! What can I do for you?!" She asks bright and cheery. Her dad smiles at her and looks at us expectantly. I feel my shyness kicking in and I hide behind Tadashi. The girl doesn't seem to mind.

"Hi, sorry about my brother. He's shy around new people. We're actually looking for a dog." He says. The girl smiles even wider. "Dad, I've got these guys. Let me do it myself." She says eagerly, dragging the both of us near the back end of the store.

"So what's your name?" Tadashi asks. The girl hold her hand out for Tadashi to shake. "My friend from school calls me Honey Lemon and insists I get others to do the same, so I guess I'm Honey Lemon." She says brightly. Tadashi gives a friendly smile in turn. "I'm Tadashi. And the bone head behind me is my little brother, Hiro." He says as I punch him in the leg. "It's so nice to meet you Tadashi. And you too Hiro." She says, waving at me. Tadashi nudges me in the side and I shyly give a half smile and wave in return.

"Gah! You are so cute!" She exclaims, picking me up. I freeze and stare at Tadashi for help. He nervously scratches his head. "Uh, I'm sorry Honey Lemon, but Hiro hates to be held." He says as politely as he can. Luckily, Honey Lemon doesn't take offense.

"Oh, no problem. My bad little one." She says, placing me down. When she does, I rush to Tadashi who picks me up. Honey Lemon smiles. "AWWWWW that's adorable. He only likes to be held by his brother!" She exclaims, causing us both to blush in embracement.

"Anyways, here are our dogs." She said, gesturing to an assortment of cages. I get down from Tadashi and marvel at all the dogs. So many colors, sizes, breeds. I don't know how to pick one. Tadashi looks at them too, almost as mesmerized as me by the choices.

"See any you like?" Honey Lemon asks excitedly. Tadashi looks at me. "What do you think Hiro?" he asks. I put my finger to my chin in thought. "I like that one." I say, pointing to a golden retriever. It was a tiny puppy with a large black stripe across its left eye. Also, one of its eyes were blue, while one was green. It looked beyond wicked. Honey Lemon beamed at our choice. "That's a great one. I found him in the streets as a stray about a week ago and thought he was to adorable not to bring back here. "So it's a he?" I ask with hope. Honey nods brightly. "Yup. Do you know what you're going to name him?" She asks.

I look to Tadashi for the answer, but he doesn't provide one. "His name will be Maximillian! Max for short." I say. Tadashi gives me a look. "And Baymax is a weird name?" He asks in disbelief. I stick my tongue out at him.

"It's a great name. Let me get that on a collar for you!" Honey says all bubbly, disappearing in a back room.

"So this is one huh?" Tadashi asks when she's gone. I look at Max and smile. "For sure. His eyes are sick." I say in awe. Tadashi has to agree. "Well, that's all great but remember that you're the one that's got to take care of it." He reminds me. "I didn't forget bro. this dog is going to get royal treatment from yours truly." I assure him. "Gee, I kinda wish I was a dog; then maybe I'd get special royal treatment from you too." Tadashi says jokingly. I roll my eyes at him.

Honey Lemon gets back and hands me a blue collar with 'Maximillian' engraved on a metal circle in the middle.

"Is that okay?" She asks hopefully. "Perfect." I respond.

She seems pleased with my answer and hands Tadashi the adoption forms to fill out.

"So how is everything going here sweetie? Honey Lemon's dad asks, popping out of nowhere. Honey smiles wide. "Great dad. I think they're happy." She says. "We are." I confirm, as Tadashi's too busy filling out the forms.

"Yeah, someday my daughter will take over the family business. Right?" He asks her. For the first time since I've met her, I see Honey Lemon crack a frown. It's a small one, but it's there all the same.

"Daddy, we've talked about this. I love helping out here, but I want to be a chemist." She says softly. Her dad frowns softly as well. "Honey, I thought that was a silly dream. You're only fourteen after all. You don't really know what it is you want." Her dad says. Honey sighs, but doesn't say anything more. I get the feeling that she doesn't like upsetting people and if she dug too deep in this conversation, it wouldn't end up with a happy father.

Tadashi finally finishes filling the forms out and hands them to Honey's father. Honey herself had gone to the front to help someone that just entered. "Ah, that dog is a nice choice. My daughter found it as a stray a few days ago, maybe a week. It's a mutation. See how the eyes are different colors. That, and the fact that it has a large black stripe." He explains, admiring Max.

I look at Maximilian and smile. "Yeah, he's gonna be the best dog ever." I say in a prideful manner, earning a nudge in the rib from Tadashi. "I mean, thank you sir." I say, hiding behind my brother again. The man chuckled. "No worries. I have no doubt he'll be a fine dog." He assures.

After buying food, bowls, pooper scooper, a leash, and a whole lot of other stuff, we leave the store as Honey cries out a "Good bye."

I feel Tadashi staring at me as I walk Max. "What?" I ask. He keeps a neutral look. "You're happy right?" He asks plainly. I'm a bit taken aback, but I respond. "Yeah, why?"

"Just making sure. You don't want anything else do you?" He asks.

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"You know, I haven't gotten you anything lately. I didn't even know you wanted a dog. Is there anything else you want? Some candy? An ice cream? I mean, we're already out." He suggests.

"I mean, if you want to then sure." I say.

"Alright, let's put all this stuff down at home and then let's go." He says. "Alright." I respond.

After dropping off all of Max's stuff down at the café and watching Aunt Cass go gaga over Max, we leave. I had to beg Tadashi to let us take Max. He finally agreed when I pulled the puppy face.

"You know Hiro, one day that face will do nothing for you." Tadashi says. "I don't care. For now, it works like a charm." I say smugly, petting Max behind the ears.

Normal POV

"Hey bonehead, wanna catch a movie?" Tadashi asked. Hiro was brushing Max's coat, but turned to face Tadashi. "Sorry I can't." He responds. Tadashi is taken aback. Hiro refusing to spend time together? That was way beyond abnormal.  
>"Why not?" He asks, a bit hurt.<p>

"Well, first I have to finish brushing Maximillian." He said, saying 'Maximillian' in a baby voice as he stroked the dog's ear, causing the puppy to wag its tail and pant affectionately.

"Then I have to feed him." He says, laughing as Maximillian licked his face. "After that, I wanted to teach him a few tricks." He continues, putting the brush back in its place and proceeding to pet the fur ball.

"Then he has to go for his walk." Hiro reminds Tadashi.

"After that, I have to make sure he gets his flea medicine." Hiro finally finishes, picking the puppy up.

"Oh okay. How about at night?" Tadashi suggests. "Can't Tadashi. It's his first night away from the pet store. I need to be here with him." Hiro says, missing the hurt look on his brother's face.

'Alright calm down. It's only one day. Besides, kid's got a point. It is the first day. In a few weeks, he'll just think of the dog as a nuisance to care for.' Tadashi says to assure himself.

Tadashi watched in awe as Hiro slept through Maximilian licking his face senseless. The not so puppy sized dog anymore was going crazy at the fact that its owner was not waking up.

Maximillian had grown noticeably and was half Hiro's size now. The dog adored Hiro more than anything and it unfortunately bothered Tadashi who didn't care to admit it.

Tadashi lifted the dog away from Hiro and it whined at the action. Tadashi didn't waver at its cries of protest and he carried the dog downstairs to finally spend some time with it for the first time.

"Alright _Max_. What's so special about you anyway?" He said, saying the dog's name in distaste. Max turned its head to the side and gave Tadashi a puppy face, holding its paw out as well. Tadashi didn't faze. "Ha, don't think that'll work. Hiro's face is easier to give into than that." Tadashi said scornfully.

His younger brother hadn't even looked his way ever since the stupid dog came. At first, Tadashi was happy that the hairy mess brought his little brother so much joy, but now it was annoying. Hiro never had time for him anymore.

"You're not even much to look at." Tadashi said flatly. Max didn't understand what Tadashi was saying, so he did what he normally did. He pounced on Tadashi playfully and swiped at his face playfully, a wide smile on his face. Tadashi was less than amused.  
>He pushed the dog away who gave a hurt look in response. Tadashi refused to look at the dog. "Pft, you're not so amazing. I'm way more fun than you." Tadashi said.<p>

Just then, he heard footsteps thumping down. Hiro appeared on the staircase with groggy eyes and messy bundle of hair. His tired brown pupils widened in happiness as he saw Max on the floor next to Tadashi.

Wiping his eyes and running a hand through his hair, he barreled down the last few steps and raced to the dog who looked equally as happy. Before Hiro could even reach the dog, Max tackled Hiro down to the floor. Since he'd gotten bigger, Hiro actually fell down from the tackle and Max proceeded to lick his favorite person's face. Hiro giggled like a school girl.

Tadashi watched in mild hatred. "Pft, we've had way more fun than that." He muttered in jealousy.

Max pounced at Hiro like he had tried to do with Tadashi before, but Hiro gave the desired response. He laughed and played back with the dog, looking so happy, it made Tadashi feel guilty about hating the dog.

'It makes Hiro so happy. How could I hate it?' He thought.

He watched as Hiro roughhoused with the dog for a good ten minutes before getting tired.

"Hungry boy?" Hiro asked the dog. Maximillian eye widened and he nodded eagerly. Hiro laughed again. "C'mon let's get you some food." He said affectionately, picking the dog up. Max's crazy eyes widened further at the word 'food' and Hiro walked toward the kitchen.

Tadashi followed, hoping Hiro wouldn't be too busy with the dog today.

Hey Hiro, wanna go to the park today?" He asked with hope. "Sure Tadashi." He replied, pouring Max his breakfast. Tadashi smiled at his response. He finally spared some time for him.

"Alright, let's go." He said, reaching for his jacket. "Gimmie a sec. Max still has to finish his food." Hiro said. "Max?" Tadashi asked, his hopes falling. "Well yeah. If we're going to go the park, Max just HAS to come." Hiro explains as if it were obvious. Tadashi's smile faltered.

'That dog's got to go.' Tadashi thought to himself.

"Hey Hiro, how much do you love that dog?" Tadashi asked.

"Max? Like what? On a scale of 1 to 10?" he asked.

"Yeah."

Hiro smiled wide, showing his tooth gap. "Infinity plus one." He responded. Tadashi frowned. Hiro didn't notice it as he had turned his attention to Max.

When the three of them (to Tadashi's dismay) arrived at the park, Hiro strapped Max to his leash and began to walk. Tadashi followed along halfheartedly.

A few minutes later, Hiro heard the ice cream truck coming and got a hopeful look on his face.

"Can we get ice cream?" He asked. Tadashi's frown deepened and he gave Hiro a sympathetic face. "I'm so sorry Hiro, but I don't have any money on me." He admits sadly. Hiro's smile fades, but comes back as Max rubs his face against the boy's leg. "Ha, it's okay Tadashi. Max is better than ice cream anyways." Hiro says in glee. Tadashi's mood still doesn't settle and the fact that Hiro repeatedly praises the dog for who knows what doesn't help it.

Suddenly, Max darts forward toward something, dragging Hiro along with him. Tadashi followed in confusion.

"What it is it boy? What'd you find?" Hiro asks in anticipation. Max picks something up in his mouth and retreats to Hiro, presenting it to him. Hiro's face lights up.  
>"Look Tadashi, Max found a five dollar bill. It's like he <em>knew<em> I wanted ice cream. Weird huh?" Hiro said, praising the dog once more.

Tadashi inwardly groaned. 'Unbelievable.' He though bitterly.

"Well let's go." Hiro said, gesturing Tadashi to follow him in pursuit of the ice cream truck. The older brother followed silently.

After getting their ice cream, they sat at a bench. Hiro had a dopey smile plastered on his face while Tadashi used all of his self-control not to strangle the dog.

"You know how I said Max is better than ice cream?" Hiro asked out of the blue. Tadashi nodded wordlessly, not even facing Hiro.

"Well, Max _and _ice cream is even better." Hiro concluded with a bright smile. Tadashi stared at his little brother, who was too busy paying attention to Max to even notice.

'What am I? A piece of crap now?' Tadashi thought sourly.

Hiro then faced Tadashi and smile even bigger, if possible. "But you know what's even better than Max and ice cream?" He asks. Tadashi gives Hiro a plain look. "Max, ice cream, and the park?" He guessed. Hiro shook his head, stifling a laugh.

"You big fat bonehead. Geez, and you call me that. You know I notice that you got jealous of Maximillian right. I just emphasized it to mess with you. It's pretty hilarious to see you get jealous like that. I was waiting for you to crack, but you never did." Hiro said, bursting into a fit of laughter. Max barked along with him.

Tadashi looked super shocked, then he blushed, then he glared at Hiro. "You little knucklehead. I'm going to give you three seconds to run away before I hunt you down." Tadashi warns. Hiro squeaked in fear and dashed away, Max right behind him.

"THREE!" Tadashi yelled, chasing his little brother. Hiro shrieked with laughter as Tadashi caught him. "Ah! That's cheating! You skipped 1 and 2!" He cried. Tadashi smirked. "I think it's acceptable considering what you did." He said.

"Hey Dashi?" Hiro questioned. "What?" Tadashi asked, secretly glad that Hiro used the nickname. It was the first time he used it since they got Max.

"I'd choose you over Max any day. You know that right? You're the best." Hiro admitted. Tadashi felt extreme happiness in that sentence, but refused to show it to Hiro. He wouldn't give him the satisfaction.

"Thanks bonehead." He said softly. "But I don't know about ice cream. You might some second to that." Hiro said teasingly. Tadashi bonked him on the head. "Well guess who's not getting any more ice cream." He said evilly.

"Ha ha. Very funny Dashi." Hiro said. Tadashi remained quiet.  
>"That was a joke right?" Hiro asked. No response.<p>

"Dashi?" He asked worriedly. Tadashi snickered.

'Ah, sweet payback.' He thought as Hiro looked genuinely concerned about the ice cream.

Lol, jealous Tadashi was fun to write about. I wanted to make him get rid of the dog at first, but I thought that'd be too cliché so I tried to take a different turn with it. Hope you liked.

Anyways, don't forget to review. Love y'all


	19. Chapter 19

Brothers

19

Ages

Hiro: 13

Tadashi: 17

Normal POV

Hiro and Tadashi Hamada were seated in a café inside SFIT, Tadashi's school. He got just got admitted this year and was excited for Hiro to see it. The twelve year old was slightly impressed, but not to the extent Tadashi had hoped for.

"C'mon Hiro, you're graduating in a just a few months; isn't there any college that catches your eye?" Tadashi asked. Hiro shoved a few gummy bears in his mouth and shrugged. "To be honest big bro, nope. I'm just done with school for now." He said honestly.

Tadashi frowned. "You don't like this?" He asked, gesturing to the school.

"I like this." Hiro said, pointing to his bag of gummy bears. Despite this not being the answer Tadashi had hoped for, he cracked a light smile. His brother had a rather dry sense of humor that most people took the wrong way. The young one's sarcasm tended to get him into trouble more often than not.

"Well, there's still time I suppose." Tadashi said thoughtfully. Hiro continued to shove gummy bears into his mouth, counting how many he could fit before his cheeks couldn't take it anymore. His cheeks were already puffed out like mini balloons. It looked quite funny, causing Tadashi to burst out laughing. "Hiro, tone it down, we're in public." Tadashi scolded, trying to stifle his chuckles.

Hiro smiled at the fact that Tadashi was trying not to laugh, so he kept going. He puffed his cheeks out even more so, giving Tadashi a mock glare. Then, he grabbed some chopsticks from the caddy and stuck them in his nose. Tadashi burst into a fit of chuckles and put a hand to his mouth to control himself. He tried to calm down, but Hiro looked so damn ridiculous.

Cheeks puffed out, chopsticks in nose, trying to look angry made his cheeks puff out further. He looked so funny, Tadashi pulled out his phone to take a picture.

"Say cheese." His older brother said. Hiro gave a Cheshire grin and crossed his eyes, making Tadashi laugh harder as he snapped the photo.

Hiro stuck three more gummy bears in his already full mouth and that's when they went flying. On, over, under, and behind the table they flew. The one's that flew backward were the ones that Tadashi deflected with his fork. A waiter gave them a dirty look. Tadashi gulped.

Hiro smiled sweetly at the waiter, silently challenging him to say something. "Hiro, quit it!" Tadashi whisper cried. The younger brother rolled his eyes at Tadashi. "C'mon bro, what's he gonna do? Kick us out?" Hiro asked mockingly.

"I cannot believe he kicked us out." Tadashi said in utter disbelief. They were both seated on a curb outside of the university.

Hiro snickered. "Well c'mon. This'll be a great story to tell your friends someday." He joked.

"Yeah Yuk it up. You actually got to finish _your_ food." Tadashi said, shooting Hiro a glare. The older brother's mind went to thinking about his lone apple pie that was most likely collecting flies in a trashcan somewhere.

"Oh boo hoo. Suck it up Tadashi. Take it like a man." Hiro said, waving it off. Tadashi was not amused. "You owe me a pie." Tadashi demanded. Hiro looked at his brother as if he were joking. "You're kidding right?" he asked. "I'm dead serious." He replied. Hiro raised an eyebrow at his older brother. "Tadashi, we LIVE in a bakery." Hiro reminded. Tadashi blushed in absolute embarrassment. "Oh right." He said. Hiro shook his head and laughed.

"Who's the older one again?" Hiro asked mockingly. Tadashi bonked him on the head. "Just because you were right about one thing, doesn't mean you can rack on me." He defended. Hiro rubbed his chin as if he were thinking it over.

"Hmm, I think it does. Clearly _I'm _the alpha sibling." Hiro mocked, purposely pushing Tadashi's buttons. It worked as the older sibling's usually calm demeanor turned into a heated, yet playful one.

"That's it, you know what's coming." Tadashi warned. Hiro pretended to look scared. "Oh no, whatcha gonna do bro? Give me a _dirty look_?" He mocked, faux shivering. Tadashi smirked.

"Nope." He said simply. Hiro looked at his older brother. Then, his eyes filled with real fear. "Oh no, you're not gonna…" Hiro says, trailing off. Tadashi smirks in response.

"Oh no." Hiro says, getting up off of the curb, ready to make a run for it. Tadashi was having none of it though. The older Hamada brother pinned Hiro on the floor and lightly sat on him, preventing him from moving. Hiro squirmed from underneath him.

"Get off of me! You weigh like 900 pounds." Hiro complained.

"Psh, calm down you big baby. This isn't even my full weight."

"Well, I'm not about to stay down here to feel all of it."

"You have a smart mouth, you know that?"

"You know, for someone that skipped a grade, you aren't very bright if you're just now realizing that."

"Hiro, I don't think you should talk or else gravity may not be in your favor."

"Gah! Tadashi get off. You're crushing me." Hiro whines. Tadashi rolled his eyes.

"Apologize." Tadashi demands.

"For what? Making you laugh? Us having a good time?" Hiro questions sarcastically.

"No bonehead. For making this the fourth time you got us kicked out of a restaurant." Tadashi says in a tone that makes Hiro feel guilty. The younger brother sheepishly lets out a tiny laugh.

He ceases squirming and looks at Tadashi with big eyes. "No Hiro. No puppy dog facing your way out of this one." Tadashi says firmly, looking away from his brother's face. Hiro sighs heavily. Putting a hand on his chin in a bored manner he says a quick "Sorry for getting us kicked out of four restaurants."

Tadashi face palms himself. "No one should have to give such a weird apology." He says in aggravation.

Hiro attempts to push Tadashi off of him while the older brother is distracted, but he's too weak to barely even move Tadashi. The older sibling looks at Hiro. "When are you going to start taking life seriously and start taking responsibility for your actions?" Tadashi asks. Hiro rolls his eyes once more. "Great, serious Tadashi. There's the guy I was looking for." He says sarcastically.

"Serious Tadashi?" The older one questions. "Yeah, there's lots of different versions of you. You get extremely upset, jealous, overprotective, serious, etc." Hiro explains. Tadashi gives Hiro a look, causing the younger one to smile innocently.

"Seriously Hiro. Do you take _anything_ seriously?" Tadashi asks. Hiro gets defensive at once. "Hey now, I take a LOT of things seriously." He protests.

"Name three." Tadashi challenges.

Hiro clears his throat and begins. "Gummy bears, getting on your nerves, and getting kicked out of restaurants." He says goofily. Tadashi face palms himself again.

"Careful big brother. You're gonna bruise your face if you keep face palming yourself." Hiro warns with a grin.

"You didn't even take the fact that I said you weren't serious seriously." Tadashi exclaims. Hiro shrugs. "Sorry I'm not boring and a killjoy like you." Hiro says nonchalantly, starting to walk. Tadashi grabbed his t-shirt and dragged him back.

"Hey, watch the shirt. It wasn't cheap" Hiro says, brushing Tadashi's hand away.

"I mean it Hiro. When are you going to stop taking life as a joke? This isn't funny." Tadashi says sternly.

Hiro looks aggravated. 'Funny how he was laughing a second ago. He was taking a picture of the moment and now he's nagging at me. Mood swings much? Like, can you say; hypocrisy?' He thinks to himself.

"I don't know, when are YOU gonna lighten up and stop taking everything to heart like a butt hurt elderly?" Hiro fired back emotionlessly. Tadashi gasped.

"You did not just say that." He said in disbelief.

"Too bad I did." Hiro replied.

"Hiro, I'm going to let this go because I'm NOT a butt hurt person, but you need to stop taking these lightly." Tadashi commands.

"I'm sorry, who died and made you the boss of me?" Hiro asked, not realizing the impact of his words until he spotted the hurt look on Tadashi's face.

"Oh shit. I didn't mean it that way Tadashi I swear!" Hiro exclaimed with jazz hands.

"This is what I'm talking about. Not thinking things through before you just use that big mouth of yours. Take a minute to realize what you're doing before you do it." Tadashi says.

"Okay that makes sense, but c'mon Tadashi. You were laughing yourself at the whole thing. What brought this whole nag on Hiro stuff?" He questioned.

"Hiro, you have to understand that while I'm a kid, I have to be a good role model for you. That includes having to act like an adult sometimes. Yes, it was damn near peeing my pants hilarious what you were doing with the gummy bears and that we got kicked out of four restaurants, but I can't encourage that kind of behavior. It's not responsible." Tadashi tries to explain.

"I totally get that Tadashi, but just think; maybe if you were a little less uptight, I would be more responsible. Live a little." Hiro urges. Tadashi adjusts his hat in thought. "Alright I'll make you a deal. I'll try to be easier on you if you stop doing things to get yourself into trouble all the time." He offers, holding his hand out. Hiro shakes his hand without a single trace of hesitance and smiles.

Hiro lay in his bed in anger. Mochi was at his side, attempting to comfort him. "I can't believe Tadashi _grounded_ me." Hiro says to no one in particular. "Is this what he thinks being lenient means? Because he's way off." Hiro muses.

Suddenly, the teenager gets up and slips his shoes on; determination etched into his face. "No. you know what Mochi? He can't do that. He can't ground me. I'm going out." Hiro says, running out the door.

The boy walked around before spotting the Sapphire café; one of the four places he had gotten himself and Tadashi kicked out of. He chuckled at the memory of what he did.

_Flashback_

"_Hiro, quit it, you're going to get us in trouble." Tadashi warned, though an amused grin traced his lips. The younger brother paid no attention to his brother's warning and he kept blowing bubbles into his chocolate shake.  
>"Look at my mustache Tadashi. I'm hitting puberty faster than you ever did." He joked. Tadashi rolled his eyes. "Real funny. Now wipe your face and finish your shake like a civil person." Tadashi commanded, handing his younger brother a napkin. <em>

_Hiro wiped his mouth, but didn't finish his shake. "Hiro?" Tadashi questioned as the younger boy pulled a smallish blue cloudy orb looking thing from his pocket. _

"_This chick from the SFIT lab gave it to me on orientation day. I think her name was Lemon or something like that. She said to put in liquid for a surprise. Wanna find out what she meant?" Hiro asked suggestively. _

_Tadashi didn't look quite as eager. "I don't know Hiro, what if something a little less than desirable happens?" he asked worriedly. "Oh quit your worrying. What could possibly go wrong?" He questioned, dropping the orb into his chocolate shake to Tadashi's dismay. _

_The shake suddenly started bubbling on its own, causing Hiro to smile and Tadashi to panic. Then, without warning, it exploded, making chocolate go spewing across the floor. It covered the entire surface of their table, and large parameters of the tiles floor. _

_A waitress stomped over to their table, covered in chocolate herself. Tadashi looked at her in horror, while Hiro laughed his pants off. "LEAVE!" She ordered, pointing to the door. Tadashi was beyond embarrassed while Hiro couldn't stop laughing. _

_When the waitress closed the door, Tadashi glared at Hiro. "How can you laugh at a time like this?! Your chocolate shake exploded, drenched the entire cafe in chocolate, and coated our waiter in CHOCOLATE!" He exclaimed. Hiro smiled. _

"_Uh, because my chocolate shake exploded, drenched the entire café in chocolate, and coated out waiter in CHOCOLATE." Hiro said, mimicking Tadashi's tone. "That's what's funny about it. No other explanation needed." He said. _

_Tadashi tried his hardest to keep a stern look on his face, but couldn't help and let out a laugh. It WAS pretty funny looking back on it. "Okay that was pretty funny." Tadashi admitted_

_End of Flashback_

"Man that was awesome." Hiro said aloud. He kept walking when he reached the Star café; another one of the four café's he had gotten kicked out of. Hiro looked through the glass to see the beautiful egg shaped cookies they had made and frosted especially for Easter as it was coming up.

"This one was certainly…interesting." Hiro said aloud, thinking about how he had managed to get them kicked out of this one.

_Flashback_

"_Trust me on this Tadashi!" Hiro had said excitedly. Tadashi looked uncertain. "Hiro, remember what happened last time you tried to entertain us at a café?" Tadashi reminded. Hiro waved it off. "Minor setback. Besides, you laughed your hat off at that, don't even try to deny it." Hiro said._

"_Alright, just promise me you won't blow anything up this time?" Tadashi begged. Hiro smiled innocently. "Psh, don't even sweat it bro, I've got this in the bag. Ha, see what I did there?" Hiro asked, pointing to his paper bag. "Oh Hiro that was a really bad joke." Tadashi said, trying not to laugh. _

_The younger of the two walked to a lady two table behind them and handed her the paper bag. "Enjoy an early Christmas gift." He had said with a smile. The lady smiled back. "Thank you little boy." She said, patting his head. _

_Hiro rushed back to his and Tadashi's table. Tadashi was doing his absolute best not to burst into laughter. Then, the older boy got a worried look on his face. "Hiro, what if she can't take a joke? I mean, this isn't a really good idea now that I think about it." Tadashi said nervously. "Then don't think. Besides, have I ever told you that you worry WAY too much?" Hiro asked, irked. _

"_Yeah, have I ever told you that you don't worry at ALL?!" Tadashi asked, getting scared. Hiro rolled his eyes at his older brother. "Relax, kick back, and enjoy the show." He said, putting his hands behind his back. Tadashi attempted to calm down, but was a nervous wreck on the inside. _

_The lady reached into the bag to retrieve a cookie with bright red icing. She took a good clean bite out of it and shrieked in alarm, causing Hiro to laugh manically. The lady glared at Hiro and flung the bag at him, but he dodged it with ease. _

"_Merry Christmas indeed." He said mockingly. _

_The lady marched over to their table and smacked her pursed directly in front of Hiro. "Where are your parents?!" she demanded. Hiro smiled emotionlessly. "Dead. You can go see em at the graveyard if you really want to tell them off." He said, trying not to laugh at the lady's expression of horror. _

"_THAT IS IT! I AM NEVER COMING TO THIS CAFÉ EVER AGAIN." She announced, storming out in anger. Hiro waved comically after her. "Bye." He simply said. Tadashi was beyond embarrassed once more. _

_The manager approached both brothers with an angry expression. "I think it's in the best interest of the customers if you discontinue to come here." He said, pointing to the door. Hiro smiled, waved, and headed out the door calling out a "You're cookies tasted gross anyway, adding hot sauce was probably an improvement!" _

"_OUT NOW!" he bellowed as Hiro scrambled out the door with Tadashi in tow. _

_Hiro had to clench his stomach in pain from all the laughter being emitted. "Hiro, I cannot believe you did that!" Tadashi exclaimed, laughing as well. "I know, did you see her face when she was looking for parents that weren't there?!" Hiro asked. "Oh my god, she's probably traumatized." Tadashi said, face palming himself. _

"_That's the last time I take you to a café." Tadashi says, wagging a finger in Hiro's face. "Psh, yeah right, who are you gonna go with? You're friends?" He asked mockingly. Tadashi raised his eyebrows. "Why not?" He asked. Hiro punched him in the shoulder. "Ha, real funny." He said, as they walked home. _

_End of Flashback_

'God that was hilarious.' Hiro thought, as he continued to walk.

He had walked so far, he could see the Honey Lemon café. According to Tadashi, that was where Honey Lemon (his friend) had gotten her name. She loved that place to death for their Lemon iced sugar balls.

Hiro thought back to how he got kicked out of this one, but shook his head and shivered. "Better not to relive this one." He thought with a shudder.

He peeked through the glass to look at what their featured item was, when something else caught his eye; or rather someONE. "Tadashi?" he questioned, although there was no possible way his brother heard him.

His brother and friends, minus Fred were seated at a booth in the café. For some reason, Hiro felt anger and hurt pound into his chest, though he was too prideful to show it. He clenched his fist and breathed deep breaths to relieve the anger.

Hiro's POV

'He grounds me, but goes to a café himself?!' I thought. I continue to watch for a while. Fred approaches their table a while later with drinks in hand. The beanie clad boy opened up a straw and began to whistle through it, making them all laugh; including Tadashi. I felt more hurt creep its way into me.

'So it's okay for a college guy to act like a child, but not for a child to act like a child?' I thought as Tadashi made no move whatsoever to scold Fred.

I decide to take action instead of watching like a stalker and a loner. I walk into the café with crossed arms, but cool demeanor. The bell makes its signature chime, indicating that I walked in and I see Tadashi turn his head to look at who walked in. his face contorts into confusion upon my arrival. I narrow my eyes at him and make my way toward their table.

"So it's okay to goof off with your friends, but when I do it I get lectured?" I demand. Tadashi gulps, but then narrows his eyes back at me.

"I thought I said you were grounded." Tadashi says with a raised eyebrow. I notice his friends exchanging uncomfortable looks.

"Yeah, too bad I don't care." I say nonchalantly. "Now back to the point." I demand again. Tadashi looks pretty miffed. "I can't believe you deliberately disobeyed me. Wait, scratch that, I CAN believe. Man, what did I do to deserve this? Why can't a have a normal brother who listens to me once in a while?" Tadashi asks, seeming to talk to the ceiling at this point. I frown at his words.

"I don't know, why can't I have a brother whose fair?" I ask him.

"Do you always have to have the last word?" He asks me with a glare.

"Maybe. Maybe not. You're avoiding the point as always." I say with a shrug.

"I hate that about you Hiro. You know that? The fact that you take everything so lightly. Why can't you be serious just for once?! Maybe there's actually a reason for everything I do." He says frustratingly.

"Well, I'd like to see one." I say. Tadashi slumps his shoulders. "No, you know what? I'm not dealing with this. Not today." Tadashi says with determination. I raise an eyebrow. "What are you gonna do? Sit on me? New flash Tadashi, we're in a café. That wouldn't exactly be 'mature'." I point out. Tadashi smiles noncommittally and calls a waiter over.

"Yes, how may I help you?" He asks. I wide my eyes and look at Tadashi for a trace of a smile on his face, but find nothing. Is he seriously about to do what I think he is? What the heck?!  
>"Sir, this boy has been banned from this café for life. He isn't even supposed to be here." Tadashi says, causing me to drop my jaw.<br>The waiter looks at me in confusion, before a knowing look replaces his expression. He gasps and points at me in shock.

"Y-you're th-the Demon!" He breathes, recalling what I had done a few weeks ago to get myself kicked out

. I glare as menacingly as I can at Tadashi. He doesn't meet my gaze. "I can't believe you." I snarl. "I could say the same to you." He replies.

"Tadashi honestly, how. Could. You." I state rather than ask. He doesn't even look the slightest bit guilty as the waiters get two security guards to escort me out of the café. I leave just as I hear Gogo question "Damn, what'd the little munchkin even do? Two security guards?"

Normal POV

Back home, Hiro was shoving what few possessions he needed into his worn out blue backpack. His face had evident anger as he thrust item after item into the bag. Mocha walked its way into Hiro's backpack as well, causing Hiro to go back to his usual mood.  
>"Rea funny Mochi, out you go." He said, removing the cat from his bag. "Meow?" The cat called as if to ask why she couldn't come. Hiro scratched his head. "You're right Mochi. I guess you can come as long as you don't bleed me dry of food." Hiro decided, putting the cat in the outer pocket. The fur ball poked its head out and licked its paw as it watched Hiro pack.<p>

"Alright, I think that's everything." He said, looking around his room. He eyes settled to Tadashi's side of the room. "Sorry for being such a failure of a brother." He said sourly, moving his arms into the straps of his backpack.  
>"Maybe I should leave a note in case they think something bad happened to me." Hiro thought, grabbing a paper and pencil from Tadashi's desk.<p>

After leaving the note, Hiro walked downstairs and headed to the door.

"Oh, Honey, where are you going?" Aunt Cass called from a table she was waiting on. Hiro gave a half smile. "Just gonna head to the park. Don't wait up." Hiro lied through his teeth smoothly.

"Alright sweetie, be safe." She said. Hiro nodded and headed out the door.

It was kind of windy outside, so Hiro was glad he was wearing his hoodie. He zipped it up and moved the hood over his head. "This is a good idea." He said, reassuring himself. The boy felt squirming coming from his backpack and let Mochi out. "You wanna walk for a bit?" He asked. Getting a meow in response, he made his way toward anywhere.

Normal POV

"You guys think I was too hard on him?" Tadashi asked his friends uneasily. They all looked away and sipped their drinks to avoid the question, except Gogo who looked at Tadashi with a 'Ya think?' expression. Tadashi face palmed himself. "Shoot! I must be the worst brother in the history of brothers." Tadashi said.

"Oh no Tadashi. You just had a bad day today is all. I'm sure of it. Watch and see, tomorrow you and Hiro will be getting kicked out of a different restaurant!" Honey Lemon exclaimed. Tadashi looked at his blonde friend with uncertainty.

"Well let's be honest here Tadashi. You called security on the kid. Your own brother." Gogo pointed out, popping her gum. Honey Lemon shot Gogo a look who shrugged as if to say 'Hey, it's true.'

"Well, it'll be okay. I mean, Hiro's an easy going sarcastic teenager. I'm sure he'll bounce back. Dude's got like zero emotions half the time like Gogo here." Fred said, eyeing the purple streaked girl.

Gogo gave him a look that scared him so bad, he turned to Wasabi for help.

"Erm, what Fred is _trying_ to say is that you have nothing to worry about. As Hiro would say at a time like this; don't sweat it." Wasabi added. This seemed to lift Tadashi's spirits a bit.

"Yeah, you guys are right. Thanks. I guess I'm just worried because he's been on edge lately, you know?" Tadashi says. Gogo gave him another look. "Tadashi, when are you _not_ worrying about the kid? Practically worship him." she stated. Tadashi narrowed his eyes at her. "Do not." He countered. Gogo smiled at Tadashi. "Oh really? Then why are you about to call home?" She asked as Tadashi had whipped his phone out.

"Well we had a fight. I just want to make sure he's alright." Tadashi defended. Gogo just crossed her arms and smirked in victory. Tadashi waved her off and dialed home.

When he was done, he got up and left money for the bill. "Where are you going?" Honey questioned. "Hiro's at the park. Aunt Cass said he was fine, but I'm just going to make sure." Tadashi stated, heading out.

He thought he was going alone, but he heard heels click behind him and turned to face Honey Lemon by the front door. "Want me to come with you?" She asked shyly, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear, a soft blush decorating her face. Tadashi being the oblivious guy he is, shrugged and said "Sure."

Delighted, Honey followed him.

"So have you and Hiro always gotten along so well?" Honey asked, just to make conversation. She hated absolute silence.

Tadashi frowned and stopped walking, confusing Honey Lemon. "Is that some kind of sick joke? I thought you were the nice one." Tadashi said, eyeing her. Honey lemon gulped and gasped.

"Wha? Tadashi what do you mean?" she asked. Tadashi observed her. "You didn't mean it the way I took it, I'm sorry." He apologized. Adjusting her glasses, Honey put a reassuring hand on Tadashi's shoulder. "What did you mean?" She asked softly. Tadashi sighed.

"I thought you were making fun of my relationship with Hiro because we just had an argument, but I take it that you meant that question seriously. Tadashi explained.

"Oh. No I didn't mean it the negative way. I'm sorry, that was probably a poor choice of words." Honey apologized sheepishly. Tadashi shook his head. "No, I'm the mean one. I don't know what's wrong with me today. I just keep upsetting people. Hiro, you, Professor Callaghan." Tadashi listed.

"Professor Callaghan?" Honey Lemon questioned. Tadashi looked at her with trusting eyes, hoping she wouldn't repeat this news to anyone else. "Yeah I ran into him earlier today. I mentioned Hiro to him and he got sad eyes; saying something about his daughter Abagail." He admitted. Honey Lemon wrapped Tadashi in a warm hug while blushing insanely. Tadashi accepted the hug and responded back, making Honey blush three more shades of red.

"Thanks Honey Lemon. You always know how to make people feel better." Tadashi said appreciatively. Oblivious to the girl's flustered face, he shot her a heartwarming smile. Honey wondered if she'd ever gets the guts to admit her feelings to the boy, but she couldn't be selfish. Hiro was his main priority and that's what he was focused on right now, so she'd do anything she could to help.

"So you didn't exactly answer my question earlier." Honey said.

"Oh, right. Well, actually no. We used to get into fights like crazy. Well I say we, but it was more _me. _I'd do some things to Hiro that I'm not proud of." Tadashi hinted guiltily. Honey patted him on the shoulder. "You can tell me Tadashi." She said, sensing his nervousness. "I'm not here to judge you from your past actions." She assured.

Tadashi tugged at his hat cautiously and sighed. "Alright. Just don't tell people. I hate having this memory in my conscience." He started. Honey agreed easily.

"So it was when Hiro was around three or four. I was eight. I wanted to go to the mall with my friends, but Aunt Cass was busy and said that I had to stay and watch Hiro, or take him with me. Reluctantly, I took him with me. When we got there, my friends eyed Hiro judgingly, but I didn't really care then. Of course being as antisocial as Hiro is, he hid behind me. They all made fun of him when he wasn't listening, and I admittedly joined in. (But I totally regret it now!)." He insisted.

Honey gave him a warm look. "Tadashi, that's not so bad. You were only eight years old. As long as you wouldn't do anything like it again, you shouldn't feel so guilty." Honey assured him. Tadashi shook his head. "That's not the end of it." He said. Honey urged him to go on.

"So I bought us both ice cream when my friends suggested we ditch Hiro. I was a bit hesitant, but I agreed so I went to him. I handed him his ice cream and led him to a chair in the parlor. He looked at me with trust and it made me feel a little bad, but I was eight; I cared more about what my friends thought of me.

I told him if he sat in the chair and didn't move until I came back, I'd buy him a huge bag of gummy bears and we'd watch a movie together. He didn't even blink before nodding eagerly and sitting in the chair. My friends and I headed to the town from there and spent the entire day together. When I was making my way home, I remembered Hiro and nearly fainted. I ran as fast as I could to the ice cream parlor and there he was, sitting.

He was kicking his feet at the table and trying his hardest not to sleep. Oh my god Honey Lemon, I'll never forget his face. He was exhausted to death, but he wasn't sleeping because _I _told him not to do anything. I felt like an asshole." Tadashi said sourly.

Honey Lemon didn't know what to say. She tried not to look sternly at her crush, but couldn't help and send him a small glare. That was simply horrible. Tadashi noticed her trouble and chuckled emotionlessly.

"I know. I'm a terrible brother. My gosh, I still can't believe that I did it to this day." Tadashi said, emotions rising at an all-time high. Honey gave a small simple smile.

"Were." She said softly.

"Huh?" Tadashi questioned.

"Were a terrible brother. I bet you're the best thing for Hiro now. You just made a mistake and you'll continue to. Look at today. I'm sure you wish you never did what you did to Hiro if you could go back in time, am I right?" She asked.

"Yeah." Tadashi said, feeling a bit better, but then a frown came crashing onto his lips.

"But you should've heard what happened after I got in the ice cream parlor." Tadashi said sadly. "Go on." Honey pressed

"I went to the little guy and you know what he did? He started crying as soon as he saw me. I hugged him and tried my hardest to calm him down, but he kept crying." Tadashi said sorrowfully.

"What did you do then?" She asked carefully.

"I was about to apologize to him, but he spoke before I could. He said, and I quote "Dashi, I'm so so sorry. I had to go the bathroom once and I moved from the chair, but then I didn't move. I swear Dashi! I didn't even sleep. Please forgive me! Do I still get gummy bears and a movie?" he had asked me."

Honey looked bewildered. "He apologized?!" She asked in wonder. Tadashi nodded sadly. "After that, if anyone even _looked_ at Hiro with a less than friendly expression, I glared them down." He admitted. "That's why I fuss over him all the time." He explained.

"That's quite a story. Does anyone else know?" she asked. Tadashi smiled a bittersweet smile. "This part of the story is the icing on the cake. I had explained to Hiro what I did to him and told him if he hated me, I'd understand completely, but to my surprise, he hugged me. He looked me in the eye seriously and asked me if I meant my apology and if I would ever do something like it again. I promised him I wouldn't and he believed me. We walked into the café and Aunt Cass asked us how our day was. I was about to tell her what I did and accept my punishment when Hiro interrupted me and said we had the best day ever. I couldn't believe he did that for me. I looked at him and smiled. He smiled back and wagged his finger in front of me like a mother scolding her son saying that I better keep my promise." Tadashi said, smiling at the memory.

Honey couldn't contain herself. "AWWW!" She cried. Tadashi chuckled at her and suddenly felt a lot better, despite the guilt he felt from the story.

"Oh, we're finally here." Tadashi mused as they entered the park. Honey Lemon's smile dropped. "Uh, Tadashi, there's no one here." She pointed out. Tadashi got a look of worry as he called his Aunt Cass. Upon hanging up, Honey waited for an explanation. "He's not home." Tadashi said in concern, running around the park, looking for Hiro.

Honey was looking too, calling the boy's name out in desperation.

Tadashi stopped running and stopped Honey Lemon from yelling any longer. "Wait." He said, trying to calm himself and Honey down.

Tadashi remembered the promise he made to Hiro. Not to worry as much. Get laid back.

"Let's not jump to conclusions." He said to his friend. "He could've just left the park. He could be on his way home. He could've gone to the store or something. We don't know for sure." Tadashi reasoned.

Honey seemed to calm down as well. "Thanks Tadashi. I needed that." She said.

"No problem. I bet Hiro's just fine." He says, trying to reassure himself more than Honey Lemon at this point.

Hiro's POV

"God Mochi, where even are we?" I asked, looking at the unfamiliar surroundings. Mocha meowed and licked her fur in response. We made our way to a shopping center type place and I found a café that looked promising. "What do you say Mochi?" I asked. The fat fur ball didn't make any protesting meows so I walked in and heard the familiar ding of a bell indicating that I entered. Sure it wasn't the exact same chime, but at this point, any slice of familiarity made me feel better about running away.

A waitress made her way to me and didn't exactly look kid friendly. "Party for...one?" she asked, eyeing Mochi distastefully. I flash her a smile, showing my tooth gap. "Not exactly a party, but yeah." I say lazily as she rolls her eyes and seats me at a table. I make Mochi sit on the floor under the table.

"What can I get you?" She asked in a bored tone. I smirk and feel my sarcasm coming in.

"How about a new waitress? One that's better looking with a side of less attitude." I say, watching her seethe with rage and storm away from me. I laugh to myself and annoyingly find myself thinking of what Tadashi would say. He'd laugh no doubt, but then he'd lecture me on how that wasn't polite even though she was worse.

I eye the menu, missing the giggles coming from behind me. I feel a tap on my shoulder before I can really scan the menu and turn around. Behind me is a table with four other kids. Two girls and two guys. They actually look around my age. This takes me by surprise. I'm not used to talking to people my age. I'm not exactly the popular one back at home with my nerdy head; having just graduated and all.

These kids however, they give me friendly smiles and gesture for me to join them. I shrug and go over, Mochi following behind.  
>"That was hilarious." One of the girls says. She's got crazy red hair with a lime green beanie on. She had to have died it with the bright strawberry color it had.<p>

"Thanks." I say with a light smile.

She holds her hand out to me. "I'm Strawberry. Well, it's actually Lasiandra, but you can see why they call me Strawberry." She says with a playful eye roll. I smile in response.

The other girl (with blonde hair) smiled lightly and held her hand out for me to shake as well. "Hey, I'm Daisy." She said. I guess she was pretty straight forward.

"I'm Jaws. My real name isn't important." One of the boys says. "And I'm Chip." The last boy says. I shoot him a look. "How'd you get _that_ name?" I ask, cursing myself for sounding rude. Luckily, Chip doesn't seem bothered.

He shrugs. "I'm good with computer chips." Is his reply. I half smile.

Strawberry gives me an expectant look. "So? Aren't you gonna tell us your name oh funny one?" she asks with a smile. "My name's Hiro." I say off handedly. She gives me a smile and I see that she's missing a bottom tooth. Kinda coincidental.

"Hero? How'd you get _that _name?" Chip asked mockingly. I smiled at him. These are definitely my people.

"It's my real name actually. It's spelled H-I-R-O." I explain. They all seem a bit surprised that I have a strange name.

"Well that won't do. You need a nickname." Strawberry says determinedly. "I don't think there's a name out there that'd suit me." I say. Strawberry smiled. "I think we'll figure something out. I'm good at thinking of nicknames." She brags.

"Well knock yourself out." I say, grabbing a menu from their table.

"This your first time at the Slice?" Chip asked. I raise an eyebrow. "This place is called The Slice?" I ask with a snort. I didn't pay attention to the name of the place before I walked in.

"Well, it's actually called Piece of Cake, but like Strawberry insists, we call it the Slice." Jaws explains. I make an 'oh' shape with my mouth and browse the menu some more.

"So how old are you?" Daisy asks. "Thirteen. Going on fourteen. You guys?" I ask, giving up on the menu. "We're all fourteen. What school do you go to?" Daisy asked. "I don't go to school. Not anymore at least." I say nonchalantly. To my pleasant surprise, Daisy or any of the others don't question why.

"That's chill. So what you said to Sarah was pretty damn hilarious. We've been tryna get on her nerves for days now. She's such a drag." Daisy explains as the others nod in agreement. I shrug. "She had it coming. Judging me when she doesn't know me." I say, assuming that they're talking about the waitress from before.

"Preach!" Chip cried as the others erupted in giggles. I crack a smile, showing my tooth gap. Strawberry gasped in delight. "Yes! I'm not the only one with jacked up teeth after all!" She exclaims. I smirk at her. "Thanks." I say sarcastically. She blushes slightly. "Whoops, I didn't mean it like that." She defends wit jazz hands. I let out a little laugh. "Don't worry, I'll try not to cry." I say jokingly.

They all laugh at that to my surprise. Usually people think I'm immature. For the first time since I ran away a few hours ago, I feel genuinely happy. Like running away was actually worth it.

"So what's the deal with the extra fur?" Jaws asks, pointing to Mochi, whose rubbing its head against Chip's legs. "Oh, I had to bring him along. I probably spend the most time with him anyways." I explain.

Before they can ask me more questions, a waitress approaches out table. She looks nice which makes me smile. "Ah, Chip, Strawberry, Jaws, and Daisy. The usual I presume?" she says with a knowing smile. They nod. Then she turns to me. "Oh, a new face? Are you dating Strawberry? She _has_ been boy crazy lately." She says. I try not to laugh at this sentence as strawberry's face turns to the color of her name.

"Fizz!" She cries in alarm. The waitress, Fizz I guess, smiles brightly. "Guess not. Well, what can I get you?" she asks. "Anything with gummy bears in it." I say plainly. She writes something down on her notepad and turns to me. "Straight forward I see. I guess your Daisy's type then." She says tossing wink in the blonde's direction who rolls her eyes in reply. Fizz leaves to get our stuff.

"Fizz's been trying to set us up with people for _ages." _Chip explains with a laugh. Strawberry still looks pretty flustered.

"So I'm guessing you guys have been here before." I say in a knowing tone. "Yup. Every Friday." Daisy confirms.

"So I've never actually seen you around here before. What subdivision do you live in?" Strawberry asks, having recovered from her embarrassment.

"I'm not from here. I honestly have no idea where I am right now." I say honestly. Again, I'm surprised to see that they don't look like they're judging me.

"Sweet. You travel or something?" Jaws asks. I shake my head.  
>"Try ran away from home." I say with a smirk. This catches Chip's attention. "Why?" he asked.<p>

I sigh, explaining what happened between me and Tadashi.

"Dude, no offense, but your brother sounds like a hypocritical jerk." Chip says when I finish. I don't say anything and I guess Strawberry mistakes it for sadness. "Hey don't worry about it Brave. I think it's cool that you're not afraid to run away from home to feel free. You're independent. You can stand alone." She muses. I raise an eyebrow. "Did you just call me Brave? As in addressed me as that?" I ask.

Strawberry nodded with a grin. "Yup. I think it's the perfect nickname." She says with such happiness, I can't complain about how girly that name sounds. "Brave." I say, testing it on my lips. "I'm anything but." I mutter.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Strawberry asks with a slight frown. "Nothing." I respond, relaxing by resting my chin on my hands.

"So tell us Brave, why exactly did you come here. Like here to Frost Point in particular." Daisy asks.

"I didn't exactly plan it. I kind of just followed Mochi really." I admit. "Mochi? Is that the cat's name?" Chip asks. I nod in response. Suddenly, Fizz comes in with our stuff.

"Coconut cream pie for Daisy. Triple chocolate shake for Chip. Crunch bar ice cream sundae for Jaws. Strawberry smoothie for Strawberry obviously. And for the new kid, a gummy bear avalanche Icee." She says, placing it in front of us.  
>"Fizz, this is Brave." Strawberry introduced. "Ah I see. Well Brave, take good care of Strawberry for me. Make sure she doesn't get into trouble." Fizz says with a wink. I notice Strawberry's cheeks grow pinker again. "Fizz he is NOT my boyfriend." She says in embarrassment. I smirk. "But you bet you wish I was." I say to fluster her further with success.<p>

Fizz laughs and leaves to serve another table.

"Dang Brave. You should've run away forever ago." Chip says with a laugh. I smile against my own will. "Thanks. You guys are pretty great too." I respond.

Suddenly, Jaws gets a sly look on his face and shares glances with Daisy and Chip. "Hey I left my wallet in my bike basket. Anyone come with?" He asks. "Right behind ya Jaws." Chip says, getting up. Daisy smiles and follows them wordlessly as well.

I scoff at their attempt to be subtle. It's a bit obvious they left me and Strawberry alone on purpose.

I decide to mess with her. I've never really socialized with people so close to my age, so I want to make the most of it. I always wanted to mess with a girl too.

I slurp my icee and moan at the taste, just to get a kick out of Strawberry's reaction. She burns a bright red at the noise I make and I burst into laughter. She glares at me and punches me in the arm.

"I hate you." She mumbles. "Hey, I love you too." I say teasingly.

"Do you love your girlfriend?" she asks hesitantly. I smirk.

"Yup. Me and my pillow really get it on every night." I reply. She laughs and covers her mouth to try to keep herself down. I smile. I've heard guys say that making girls laugh is a super good feeling, but I didn't think it felt this good. She turns serious for a second and I get a bit nervous.

"You know, I bet your brother, Tamagotchi, misses you." She says quietly. I laugh and she shoots me a glare, indicating that she meant what she said. "Sorry, it's just, his name isn't Tamagotchi. It's Tadashi." I correct her.

"Oh, well you know what I meant." She said with jazz hands. I smile softly and look at my icee. If I was here with Tadashi, I probably would've gotten up kicked out by now for doing something stupid. I sigh and give Strawberry a look. "I know. I don't plan on running away for good. I just needed to clear my head." I assure her.

"Well whatever you came for, I'm pretty glad you did." She says with a blush dusting her cheeks. I smile at her. She _is_ pretty cute.

"Yeah, me too." I say, but my answer holds a double meaning.

"So you guys wanna hit the skate park?" Chip asks as he and the rest come back inside. "Sure." Strawberry says, blush gone from her cheeks.

"Sorry, but I think I'm gonna head out." I say, grabbing my backpack and icee. They actually all look pretty disappointed. "Are we ever going to see you again?" Strawberry asked, hope filling her voice.

I'm not one to give false hope, so I don't. "Well, I honestly don't know for sure and I'm not promising anything, but I do hope so." I say with a half-smile.

"Group hug!" Daisy cries, gathering all of us in an embrace. I blink. I've never been a part of a group, let alone a group hug. It felt…nice.

"Well bye guys. It's been fun." I say. They all murmur their good byes and head out the door. All except Strawberry that is. "Yes?" I ask teasingly. She closes her eyes and sighs. "Just in case we don't see each other again." She says, inching toward me.

"Wha-?" I start, but I'm cut off by a kiss from the redhead. I close my eyes almost unwillingly and it's over before I can fully process what it felt like. Strawberry is blushing brighter than her hair at this point and she runs out of the café before I can even react.

I put a finger to my lips. "Almost as good as gummy bears." I muse as I can taste her strawberry smoothie that lingered on my lips.

I quickly get a glass of milk (to-go) and rush out of the café to see what to do next.

Tadashi's POV

I had been walking forever. When I got home, Hiro still wasn't there, but Aunt Cass wasn't aware. When she asked where he was, I lied and told her he was sleeping. She believed me and I felt panic rise in my chest. I tried calling the bonehead, but he didn't pick up.

I had glanced around our room for any hint or note of his random leaving. I found a note on my desk and almost dropped it before I finished reading it. It said he ran away to clear his head from everything and to not go looking for him. Of course I ignore the last part and was looking for him.

Now I was stranded in the middle of nowhere, searching for him.

I look at a sign that read 'Welcome to Frost Point.' "Where the hell am I?" I questioned aloud

Right when I was losing hope, I heard a voice say "Here Mochi, drink up!"

I ran in the direction of the voice.

Hiro's POV

I opened the lid of the milk cup and held it out to the cat. "Here Mochi, drink up!" I say, as the poor cat must've been starving by now.

Then I hear footsteps stomping toward me. I'd recognize those footsteps from miles away.

I didn't even turn before talking to him. "Tadashi. I see you ignored the note. That's expected." I say in a bored tone.

"Hiro, this isn't funny. I hope you're satisfied because I practically looked all over the city for you only to find that you city hopped." Tadashi scolded.

"Okay first of all, city hopping isn't a thing. Second, whatcha gonna do? You already sat on me. Called security on me. What's left? 911?" I ask bitterly.

"Well okay Hiro I get that, but c'mon. You can't do something crazy like this every time I make a mistake." Tadashi reasons. "Well then stop making so many mistakes." I respond as Mochi finishes the milk.

"Hiro, come on. We are going home." Tadashi states. "No." I respond.

"Excuse me?"

"Did I stutter?"

"I think you need to chill out and think about what you're saying."

"I think that you need to go home. _Without_ me."

"Well I think you need to come with me right now before I get Aunt Cass involved."

"Well I think that's stupid because I planned on staying here awhile."

"Hiro, don't tell me you actually enjoyed running away."

"Alright, I won't tell you then."

"You can't be serious."

"Make up your mind Tadashi. Do you want me to be serious or not? I'm just never gonna be good enough for you am I?" I asked in aggravation.

"So you're telling me you don't regret running away at all?" Tadashi asked.

"Nope. In fact, I think it's one of the best ideas I've ever had." I confirmed.

Tadashi was not convinced. "Oh really? Name one thing you like about being away from home? One thing." Tadashi challenged.

"I met friends my own age, I didn't get kicked out a café, I didn't get nagged at since I left, I made a girl laugh, that same girl kissed me, I've smiled more today than I ever have in my entire life, and I probably had the best icee in history of icees." I list off.

"Hiro, please come home." Tadashi begged, ignoring everything I just said.

"Why the heck would I want to do that?" I ask.

Okay, ignore me, but don't you care about Aunt Cass?" He asked.

"Course I do. I'll still come visit." I say.

"Hiro do you even hear yourself? You'll come visit?! You're thirteen for crying out loud." Tadashi pointed out. "Almost fourteen." I mumble.

"Hiro, you're coming home." Tadashi said sternly.

Normal POV

"No." Hiro said stubbornly. "I'm not going back to a life of constant nagging, scolding, and yelling about how immature I am. You're a kid Tadashi. No matter how hard you try, you can't be an adult all the time. Why do you only let loose in front of your friends Dashi? Why? I miss the older times. The times when you'd get into trouble _with_ me. Nowadays, you only get laid back with your friends. You're my brother before anything else. You know that right?" Hiro asked, almost desperately.

Tadashi was taken aback. Hiro's usual cool demeanor was replaced with a sad and longing one.

"Hiro, you know I have to act older around you. I have to be a good role model." Tadashi explained. Hiro grew angry at these words.

"That's what Aunt Cass is for. You're not my legal guardian Tadashi, Aunt Cass is. I don't think you fully comprehend that." Hiro stated.

Tadashi looked down. Hiro suddenly felt bad.

"Tadashi, it's not that I don't want you to take care of me. Believe me, I'm not saying that. I just want to hang around like we used to. You know, laugh when I'm acting childish and maybe join in instead of lecturing me. We should both be getting into trouble together, like normal misbehaving kids." Hiro said.

Tadashi gave a half smile and looked at Hiro with determined eyes. Mischief twinkled in them.

Hiro waited in anticipation for what his brother could possibly say to show him that he was going to try and be more like a brother instead of a father.

"So you kissed a girl huh?" He asked teasingly. Hiro cracked a huge smile.  
>"There's the brother I missed for so long." Hiro said.<p>

"So you like it here that much?" Tadashi asked.

Hiro nodded. "But let's go home. I get the feeling Mochi misses Aunt Cass more than I do." Hiro joked, picking the cat up.

"So how was it?" Tadashi asked.

"How was what?" Hiro questioned in return.

"Your first kiss baby bro." Tadashi said, nudging Hiro in the side. Hiro looked up. "Perfect. Hey, can we buy some strawberries on the way home?" He asked goofily, laughing at his own joke.

Okay a few things

Sorry this chapter is so long, like it's toooooooo long

Sorry I'm not updating every day, but I've been busy. I'm tryna update as fast as I can, so bear with me (PLEASE)

Sorry if there wasn't as much of a brotherly bond here, but I was going for a 'Tadashi needs to be more of a brother/best friend rather than a father' type approach.

Hope you liked it! Review if you want!

-girl you would expect.


	20. Chapter 20

Brothers

20

Ages

Hiro: 4

Tadashi: 10

Tadashi's POV

"Dashi get up! Wake up! C'mon wake up!" Hiro cried, jumping up and down like crazy on my bed. I groan and cover myself further with my comforter.

Hiro's mood doesn't waver as he tugs at covers, trying to get them off of me. It's a shame that I'm holding on as tightly as I can.

"Dashi c'mon, it's Christmas! Santa came! We have to go and see! Presents!" Hiro exclaimed.

My heart clenched at Hiro's bubbly words. Yeah, it Christmas. The first Christmas without mom and dad to be exact. I don't think Hiro fully understands that, which is good because I want him to be happy on Christmas. Too bad I can't say the same for myself.

I miss them so much. Mom would make hot chocolate. Amazing hot chocolate with cute little marshmallows in it. Dad would put up the Christmas tree and Hiro and I would decorate it like crazy, given that the kid would usually wrap himself up in wreath more often than not.

It was fun. Just the four of us. Now it's only three. I couldn't face Hiro. Not while I felt miserable. I didn't want to ruin his joy.

"Dashi! Come ON. You didn't even help decorate the tree! Come open presents!" He cried, yanking at the sheet harder. I smirk and let go of the sheets, causing him to go flying off of the bed. I look over my shoulder to see if he's okay, but the bonehead clutched the covers in victory and jumps up and down, high on adrenaline.

"Yes! Now c'mon. Let's see if Santa got me everything I wanted!" Hiro urged, pulling me out of bed. I shake my head and manage a small smile for him.

We head down to the living room and spot Aunt Cass with a camera. "Oh, this is going to be great. Stand together, let's get a picture!" Aunt Cass boomed eagerly.

"I'd rather not Aunt Cass, but thanks." I say, sitting on the couch. I watch as Hiro rushes to the tree to barrel into the gifts, but stops himself. He looks at me with a sad look. "Dashi, what's wrong? Usually you're more excited than me. Let's open em." Hiro says, gesturing to the gifts.

"You go ahead. I'll just watch first." I say. Hiro less eagerly pulls out a gift. It's blue with green stripes. He waddles his tiny feet my way and hands me the gift. "C'mon Dashi open it. It'll make you feel better." He says, practically shoving it into my hands.

I really don't care to open a gift right now, but I don't want to upset Hiro so I open it. It's a book on robotics. I smile halfheartedly. It's exactly what I wanted.

"Dashi, c'mon where's the bright smile?" Hiro asks, confused. I feel bad and ask to be excused.

Normal POV

Hiro frowned at Tadashi's retreating form.  
>"Auntie, what's wrong with Dashi?" He asks, joyful mood gone. "Oh honey, he's just tired." Aunt Cass lied. "Honey, why don't you open a present while I check on him?" She suggests, leaving.<p>

Hiro stares underneath the Christmas tree, searching for the one special thing he asked for. He couldn't find it, so he grabbed a random purple box addressed to him. It was from Santa so Hiro gave it a go and tore open the box. Inside lay a toy robot. The one he had asked for.

He looked everywhere around the tree in pursuit of finding the gift he had specially asked Santa for. Not able to find it, Hiro frowned.

Suddenly, Aunt Cass and Tadashi came back. Tadashi's eyes were red.

"Dashi, what's wrong? Were you crying?!" Hiro asks in alarm. Tadashi ignored his younger brother, causing the little toddler to give a hurt look.

"He'll be fine sweetie. I'm going to go grab some eggnog from the corner store really quickly. I'll be right back." She said, leaving.

Tadashi wordlessly sat on the couch. Hiro looked for his special gift more time, but couldn't find it. The little boy couldn't help but feel a bitter question rise in his head. 'Is Santa even real?' he thought.

He climbed onto the couch with a grunt and crawled up to Tadashi, who looked at him with a neutral expression. "Dashi?" He asked with a sad frown. "What is it Hiro? Did you get your gifts?" Tadashi asked.

"Almost. I only didn't get one thing. Does Santa forget certain things sometimes?" Hiro asked. Tadashi gave a small smile.  
>"Nope. That's the beauty of Santa. He gives you everything you ask for." Tadashi replied, ruffling Hiro's hair. The boy pulled away from the gesture and glared at Tadashi.<p>

"Dashi, are you lying to me? Because I want the truth." Hiro demanded, arms crossed. Tadashi looked surprised. "Wow Hiro, where is this coming from?" The older boy asked.

"Dashi, you're sad because of mommy and daddy right?" Hiro asks nonchalantly. Tadashi's eyes widened. "Hiro, how did you know?" he asked, bewildered. "It doesn't take a genius to figure it out. But Dashi, why did Santa forget my gift? I wanted you to enjoy it with me." Hiro said sorrowfully.

"What didn't you get?" Tadashi asked. Hiro ignored his brother's question. "Is Santa real?" He asked, almost desperate for the answer.

"Hiro…" Tadashi said trailing off.

Hiro slapped his head in frustration. "I KNEW IT! No one gets what they want just by asking for it from a made up jolly dude in a suit. I'm so stupid." Hiro shouted in anger.

"Whoa Hiro, calm down." Tadashi said, reaching for the boy, who clean dodged him.

"I asked for mom and dad Dashi. I asked for them to come back because I noticed you were upset. I thought Santa would bring them so you'd be happy again. But he didn't because he's not real. He's a false hope he is. I wanted mom and dad so you'd enjoy Christmas, because I'm not enough." Hiro admitted, bitterness lacing his tone.

Tadashi felt guilt rise in him. He had done exactly what he was afraid of. He ruined Christmas for Hiro. He couldn't keep his emotions bottled up enough.

"Hiro, I…You don't have to feel bad." Tadashi said lamely.

Hiro's face fell at his brother's lack of comforting words. He started to waddle over to the stairs.

"W-wait Hiro. I'm sorry!" Tadashi cried. Hiro turned to him expectantly.

"I am happy! I really am." Tadashi promised. Hiro didn't look convinced. "No you aren't. You're lying again Dashi. Stop lying." Hiro said sadly. Tadashi didn't know what to do. For once, he couldn't figure out how to comfort his brother and it hurt to admit it.

Hiro looked down. "That's what I thought." Hiro said gloomily, ascending upstairs. He closed the door to their room with a soft clink, leaving Tadashi feeling worse than he had when he woke up.

Tadashi remained on the couch, not willing himself to cry again. Aunt Cass tried to make him feel better in her own way, but it hadn't helped. He needed his mom and dad. He sighed and thought about what Hiro said.

The boy paid such close to him that he wished for his parents. The most shocking part was that Hiro didn't seem to miss them that much. He practically asked for his parents merely to please Tadashi.

"I'm an idiot." Tadashi said, covering his face with a pillow from the couch he was sitting on. In one Christmas he had; ruined Hiro's happiness, stopped him from believing in Santa at age four, made him miserable, and failed to comfort him afterwards.

"Gah, I honestly don't know what to do!" He cried in agony. His voice echoed around the halls, indicating that now he truly _was_ alone on Christmas.

Aunt Cass POV

Sometimes, I don't know what to do about that boy. Hiro didn't give this much trouble and I assumed that the younger child would be more of a handful, but I can't blame his. Poor Tadashi shouldn't have to lose his parents at such a young age. Hiro probably didn't understand that they were never coming back so he coped a lot better.

I sighed and entered the café, not happy with what I saw. Tadashi was seated on the couch alone. Hiro was nowhere in sight. Presents were still strewn across the Christmas tree, untouched.

"Tadashi. Explain." I demand. Instead of an explanation, I receive a sad look. I immediately feel bad. I guess my comforting from before didn't help him as much as I had hoped.

"Aunt Cass, can I ask you a question?" He asks me.

"Of course. Anything Tadashi." I reply.

"Why do things still hurt when you know the answer?" He inquires.

"What do you mean by that"? I ask, confused.

"Like I know mom and dad are gone. I know they aren't coming back, but it still hurts me. And Hiro pretty much knew that Santa wasn't real, but it still hurt him when I confirmed it. Or when you knew that I ate the last cookie from the jar, but still were upset when I fessed up to it to your face." He explains slowly.

I blink, unsure of how to respond.

"Aunt Cass?" He questions worriedly.

"Honey I don't know." I reply quietly, tears poking through my eyes, and Tadashi face palms himself.

"I'm ruining everything! First Hiro, now you. I'm a scrooge." He whines painfully.

I stop myself from breaking down for Tadashi's sake and look him in the eye.  
>"Hey listen to me little man. You are NOT a scrooge. You need to cope with your loss and I apologize for not understating that as I much as I should have. I guess I was too busy making sure that I kept you happy, I forgot to impress upon you how to cope with a loss." I say.<p>

Tadashi's face lit up and he rushed to give me a hug. I gladly accepted it.

"Aunt Cass you're brilliant. How do you always know what to say?" He asks, pulling away from the hug. I smile and pat his head. "Tadashi, you seem to know what to say to Hiro most of the time. Only age and experience can teach you more. But for now, I think you're doing a better job with the kid then I ever could. You always know what to say." I assure him. He smiles at my answer, but a small frown pushes its way onto his face.

"Yeah, except today." He grunts. I give him a puzzled look which he waves off. "Don't worry about it. I'm about to fix it anyway. Thanks again Aunt Cass." He says, running upstairs. "Anytime." I say, though he didn't hear it.

Tadashi's POV

I head to mine and Hiro's room and open the door. Well, _try_ to open the door I should say. Hiro had locked it. I knock and hear Hiro's tiny footsteps approach the door.

"Who is it?" He demands.  
>"It's me, Tadashi." I say<p>

"What's the password?" He asks.

I wrinkle my nose. "Hiro we don't have a password for our room. Just open the door." I say.  
>"I made one up while you weren't here." Hiro explains as if it were obvious.<p>

"Well then how would I know what it is genius?" I ask. I hear Hiro smack his face in annoyance. "I guess you're right." He mumbles reluctantly, opening the door.

I'm a bit surprised to see that Hiro's back in his pajamas. He was wearing his casual wear a few minutes ago. He looks thoroughly upset which will make this easier. I mean, I can't possibly make things worse.

"Someone tired?" I ask with a tease in my voice. He rubs his eyes and glares at me.

"I want to sleep and then wake up to see it be Christmas again, but this time you wouldn't be so grumpy. You'd be happy and make me hot chocolate like you used to." He says, catching me off guard.

"Hiro, I never- I mean, c'mon I want to take you somewhere." I say, cutting myself off.

The nurses at the hospital mentioned this. Hiro would probably soon forget things that mom and dad used to do and assume that me or Aunt Cass did them. Him thinking that I made the hot chocolate instead of mom is an example of that. Soon, Hiro would probably forget mom and dad altogether. I couldn't let that happen. Not after what trouble I already caused.

"Where are we going?" He asks me as I toss him his hoodie.

"Surprise." I say mysteriously. Hiro cracks a small smile and puts his hoodie on. "Christmas surprise?" He asks hopefully. "You bet." I reply, grabbing his hand. He complies and we walk downstairs.

"Aunt Cass, can I take Hiro somewhere really quickly? I promise we won't be out long." I ask. Aunt Cass smiles at out hand holding and nodded. "Of course Honey." She answers.

Hiro and I head out. We stop at the flower shop and observe all the choices they have. "Are we getting these for Aunt Cass?" He asks. I shake my head. "Nope. Don't ask too many questions or you'll ruin the surprise." I tell him. He luckily agrees and stares at the purple died roses.

"You like those?" I ask. He nods and I pick up a bouquet of them. Paying for them, we head to a coffee shop and I buy two hot mugs of hot chocolate. Hiro gladly takes one and sips it greedily. Then I blindfold Hiro and carry him on my shoulders while he holds the roses so the surprise isn't ruined.

"C'mon Dashi, tell me where we're going." He begs. I don't budge. "Please Dashi?!' he begs again, giving me a kiss on the cheek. I laugh. "Is that supposed to get me to tell you where we're going? Because it really isn't working." I tell him plainly. He huffs and refuses to talk to me anymore.

I roll my eyes at the kid. Little bonehead won't be silent for long.

We finally get there and I let Hiro down easily. "Can I take it off now?" he asks desperately. "Yes you big baby. Take it off." I say with a grin. He yanks it off eagerly and looks around. Disappointment flashes across his eyes.

"Rocks? You brought me to see a bunch of rocks?" He asks, let down. I laugh at his ignorance and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Those rocks Hiro, are mom and dad." I say fondly. Hiro looks confused. "I'm confused." He says flatly.

"I know you may not completely understand it, but mom and dad are dead, but they'll always be in our hearts. We shouldn't mourn over them too much, but that doesn't mean we should forget them either. I don't want you to forget them no matter what people say, so I brought you here to see if you had any questions about them." I explain.

Hiro looks dumfounded. "So…Mom and dad are down there? They're here?" Hiro asks, not believing it. I nod and take the flowers from him. I place them in between mom and dad's graves.

"Dashi. Dashi I get it now!" Hiro cries as if he's made a fascinating discovery. "What do you get?" I ask.

He looks at me as if it's obvious. "Dashi, YOU'RE Santa!" He exclaims in wonder. I look at him in confusion.

"I asked for mom and dad and you brought me to them. That's what I wanted!" Hiro explains with a huge grin plastered onto his face. I suddenly feel a lot better. "Hiro, if that's what makes you happy, just call me Santa." I say with a chuckle. Hiro smiles in response.

"So why'd you think I forgot them?" He asks. "Because you did bonehead. I never made the hot chocolate, mom did." I explain. Hiro makes an 'oh' shape with his mouth.

"Alright then, what were their favorite colors?" he asks curiously.

""Mom's was red, dad's was blue." I say. Hiro smiles even wider. "That's perfect Dashi! We bought purple flowers and red and blue make purple. It's like we mixed their colors together!" He exclaims in joy. I smile at him and pull him closer to me as he asks me more and more questions. Maybe just maybe, I can handle being without mom and dad. Scratch that, they're always with me. I just realized it a little too late.

SO happy late Christmas! Sorry I didn't post this ON Christmas, but I didn't think about it because I don't celebrate it. Anyways, thanks for reading! I love you guys! Also, someone asked me this question a while ago. It was if my math questions and answers were legit from chapter 15 and the answer is; YES! I'm a math nerd so I made sure they were correct!

-the girl you wouldn't expect


	21. Chapter 21

Brothers

21

Ages

Hiro: 6

Tadashi: 12

Normal POV

"Whatcha doin Tadashi?" Hiro asked his older brother.

"Just looking for some kind of job I can do to earn money." Was his reply.

Hiro was bored just walking around outside doing nothing, so pestering his older brother with questions was all he could think of.

"Why are you trying to earn money?" Hiro asked.  
>"To get something." He replied, occupied in some flyer.<p>

"What?" Hiro asked, clicking his tongue out of boredom.

"A part I need for this robot I'm building." Tadashi said, facing his brother for the first time. Hiro smiled back. "You found a job?" The little one asked, hoping they could go home now. Tadashi's smile fell. "No. Gah! What kind of job can a twelve year old possibly do?!" He cried out.

Hiro tapped his chin in thought. His face suddenly lit up and he gave his brother a megawatt smile, showing his teeth gap. "You can have the money from my piggy bank if you want. All of it!" he declared, as if he solved the problem. In one word, Tadashi was touched. He gave a goofy smile and pulled his little brother in for a ruffling session. Hiro pulled away and stuck his tongue out.

Tadashi laughed out loud. "Thanks Hiro. But I think I might still be a few bucks short even after your generous donation." The older boy said. Hiro's smile turned sheepish. "Sorry." Was all he had left to offer.

"Hey don't sweat it. I'll think of something." Tadashi assured. Hiro hit Tadashi lightly on his side. "Hey, that's my phrase. You can't steal it." He said. Tadashi smirked at him. "Don't sweat it! Don't sweat it! Don't sweat it!" he chanted, just to spite Hiro. The little one pounced on Tadashi, causing them to fall over.

"Ah! Hiro!" he cried with a laugh. Hiro crawled on top of Tadashi's laying form and wagged a finger in his face seriously. "Take it back." He demanded playfully. Tadashi refused, flipping them over and then tossing Hiro over his back. The younger of the two shrieked in surprise and then cried for Tadashi to let him go, trying to stifle his giggles.

"What was that Hiro?" Tadashi asked smugly. Hiro sighed in defeat. "Nothing. You win." He said. Tadashi chuckled and let Hiro down. "No! Now you have to carry me!" Hiro insisted. Tadashi raised an eyebrow. "And why is that?" he asked. "Because it's the rules." Hiro said, crossing his arms. "Well, if it's the rules." Tadashi said with a scoff, giving into Hiro. He placed his brother behind his shoulders and grabbed his legs for safety as they walked home.

Upon reaching the café, Tadashi let Hiro down on the couch while sulking next to him. Hiro crawled up to him and attempted to make him feel better. "Don't worry Tadashi. I'm sure you'll find a way to earn the money somehow. Even with a brain as small as yours." He says with a teasing smirk. Tadashi lets out a chuckle and leans his arm around his brother. "Thanks bonehead, but I doubt it. My brain's fried. There's just nothing a twelve year old can do to make money." He said with a sigh.

Hiro racked his brain for an idea while Tadashi left to the kitchen. "What would I do if I was Tadashi? Hmm… he's good with kids. He's really nice. Really caring and fun. Wait! That's it!' Hiro announced, running after his brother.

"Tadashi! Tadashi!" He cried in excitement. Tadashi released his grip from the cookie jar and turned attentively to his younger brother.

"What is it Hiro. You alright?!" He asked in alarm. Hiro waved his brother's motherly instincts away and got to the point. "Tadashi, I know what you can do to make money." Hiro said proudly. His older brother's motherly instincts were forgotten. "What?" he asks eagerly. "Babysitting. You'll be great at that." Hiro insisted. Tadashi thought about before breaking into a grin.

"Hiro, you're a genius!" Tadashi said in joy, picking his brother up and swinging him around the kitchen. "Yeah yeah, I know. Now put me down." Hiro said, fidgeting in Tadashi's hold.

"You sure you can do this?" Aunt Cass asked nervously.  
>"C'mon Aunt Cass, don't worry. It'll be a piece of cake. I take care of Hiro as it is." Tadashi reasoned. His aunt gulped and nodded. "You're right, it's just that I won't be here in case you need help and I wish I didn't have to go but this convention is- "Aunt Cass, don't even worry." Tadashi said, cutting her off. "Yeah, don't sweat it Aunt Cass." Hiro piped up to back his brother up. Aunt Cass giggled and patted Hiro's head. "Alright. Well take good care of the kid. This is your first job, so make sure you make a good impression on the parents." Aunt Cass advised.<p>

"I will." Tadashi promised. "Yeah, I'll make sure he does. So you go to your convention and have fun." Hiro called, pushing his Aunt out the door. "Okay, I love you both!" She called as she left. "Love you too." They called, shutting the door.

"So how old is he? The kid you're watching." Hiro asked. "It's a girl and she's 4." Tadashi replied. Hiro wrinkled his nose. "Girl?" He questioned with distaste. "Yes girl. And you're going to be polite and on your best behavior." Tadashi warned. Hiro rolled his eyes. "Yeah whatever." He replied, heading to his room.

The doorbell rang and Tadashi went to answer it. A young women, twenty at most, stood with a little girl. They had identical blonde curls and green eyes. The women gave Tadashi a friendly smile. "Hello. I'm Mrs. Franklin and this is my daughter Elizabeth." She said, gesturing to the small child. Tadashi gave her a warm smile and waved. The girl waved back a bit shyly.

"Well, I'll leave you to it. Like I said, I'll be gone for three hours tops." Mrs. Franklin said. "No problem. Have fun." Tadashi called to her, closing the door. He turned to face Elizabeth. "So are you ready to have some fun?" Tadashi asked. The girl looked down shyly and shrugged.

"Hey, how about we get to know each other better? I'll start. My name is Tadashi." He said kindly. Elizabeth cracked a light smile and held her hand out. "Mommy calls me Lizzy sometimes." She offers. Tadashi shook her hand, glad that they were getting along.

Half an hour must have at least passed before Hiro decided to come downstairs.

"Ah Hiro, you're just in time. Lizzy and I were going to play hide and seek. Wanna play?" Tadashi asks. "Hiro?" Lizzy questions.

"Oh right. Hiro, meet Lizzy. Lizzy, this is my brother Hiro. He's six." Tadashi introduces. Lizzy sticks her hand out for Hiro to shake, but he doesn't react. "Girls have cooties." He says flatly.

"Hiro, that wasn't very nice. Apologize." Tadashi says as Lizzy starts to sniffle. Hiro crosses his arms. "No way Tadashi. It's true. Ask anyone." His brother says stubbornly.

"Hiro I mean it. Cut it out with the nonsense and say you're sorry." Tadashi demands. Hiro rolls his eyes.  
>"Alright Lizzy. I'm sorry." He says with attitude. Lizzy doesn't seem to mind. That is, until Hiro speaks up.<p>

"Sorry that you're a girl and have cooties." He says with his tongue sticking out. Tadashi gasped and Lizzy began to cry. "Hiro! Go to your room!" Tadashi commanded angrily, picking up the little girl. Hiro was taken aback. That wasn't how the six year old had expected things to go. He stomped all the way to his room in anger.

Hiro's POV

How could he yell at me like that? How dare he? Stupid Lizzie. Stupid girls in general. What am I even supposed to do now? I huffed and lay down in my bed, bored. I can't wait until this Lizzie girl goes away. Then Tadashi will just spend time with me. Just us two; the guys.

I stay in my room for what feels like forever before I head downstairs again. I hear laughter and sneak my way into the living room to see what's going on. I see Tadashi swinging Lizzie round and round and my blood boils. Who exactly did this girl think she was? Showing up and acting like Tadashi was _her_ brother. News flash blondie, he's _my_ brother.

I watch as she giggles in joy and Tadashi smiles. I glare at the sight and stomp into the room. Tadashi notices my presence and ignores me. I feel my walls crumble. "I'm sorry Lizzie. You probably don't have cooties." I say. At this point I'll say anything for Tadashi to quit spinning her around. My brother looks surprised at my apology.  
>"It's okay. We can be friends." Lizzie says all bubbly. I inwardly glare at her. Like heck we'll be friends.<p>

"Tadashi, I want a turn." I say softly. "Don't worry Hiro. Lizzie's mom will pick her up in an hour or so. Then you can be spun as much as you want." Tadashi promised. My efforts are wasted as Tadashi continues playing with Lizzie.

"Tadashi, I'm bored. I want to do something too." I whine. He looks at me with a tired expression. "Hiro, I'm a bit busy. Can't you do something on your own for a while?" Tadashi asks. "Can't _you_ just play with me for a few minutes? I mean, you've been with her for so long already." Hiro defends. He sighs, but comes toward me.

"Alright. I'll spin you, but then I've got to watch Lizzie okay?" He says sternly. I nod, happy that I got him to myself for a while. He's spinning me when Lizzie starts to sob. He puts me down instantly to my disappointment.

"Lizzie what's wrong? You okay?" he asks, concern all over his face. I frown. He's supposed to fuss over _me_ like a mother hen, not some strange little girl.

"I wanna play." She whines. I roll my eyes. What a baby. She can't share Tadashi for more than a minute. I let her have him for two whole hours already. I want a turn.

"But Tadashi." I start, but he cuts me off with a look. "Hiro, just give me a sec okay?" He asks, ignoring me. I slump my shoulders and saunter upstairs.

She's young. That's gotta be how she's getting to Tadashi. I'll just have to look and act younger than. I rush to our closet and grab the clothes that make me look the most babyish. I find a red t-shirt with the words 'Bestest little brother' and slip it on. I practice my puppy dog face and then head back downstairs. Tadashi's feeding the she-demon dinner now. This my chance.

"Dashi, I'm hungry too. I haven't eaten yet." I pout. He looks at me with a slightly confused expression. He squints at my t-shirt. "Hiro, I thought you hated that shirt because it was grammatically incorrect." Tadashi points out. It's true. When Tadashi got it for me, I refused to wear it because it was babyish. I shrug. "I like it now. But I'm hungry Dashi." I say, emphasizing the nickname.

"Well you know where the food is. Help yourself." He simply says, going back to feeding Lizzie. I feel my efforts crumble once more and stomp to the cabinet to get a glass. As I open the cabinet, a glass falls without warning, straight on my foot. I cry out in pain and watch as blood pours out. Tadashi's at my side in an instant.  
>"Hiro, you okay?" he asks in concern.<p>

"Yeah I'm fi- I mean OW! It hurts Dashi! It stings." I say, catching myself. Tadashi's finally paying me some attention. I can't let it go to waste. "It looks pretty bad. Nasty cut. Hang on, let me get the first aid kit." He says, rushing to the bathroom. I smile in victory.

He's back in a jiff, cleaning my foot up and wrapping it in a bandage. Then he cleans up the excess glass and pours me a glass of orange juice. "Feel better?" He asks, watching me carefully. I nod and smile. "Thanks." I say. He nods and goes back to feeding Lizzie.

That's it? Nothing else. No 'Hey Hiro, want to play? Want me to feed you too?' I frown again, but then an idea sparks in my brain.

I make sure Tadashi's occupied with Lizzie -which isn't hard to my dismay- and get a knife from the cabinet. I take a deep breath and lightly cut my right hand. I wince at the pain and clench my hand into a fist. Tadashi notices my pain and rushes over again.

"What is it Hiro? What happened?!" he asks. I look at him with my puppy dog face. "I think a piece of glass cut my hand from before." I lie, showing him my hand. He sighs. "God Hiro what am I gonna do with you?" he asks, but I catch the teasing in his voice. He wraps up my hand with a bandage and asks me how it feels.

"Stings a bit, but I can tough it out." I say.

"Do you think you can eat yourself?" he asks me. I shrug. "I think so, let me check." I say, grabbing a fork. I drop it for show and pretend to wince in sheer pain. "Wow, easy bonehead. I'll feed you. Lizzie's probably full anyway, right?" he asks. The blonde nods halfheartedly.

"Lizzie, why don't you go watch TV while I feed Hiro real quick okay?" Tadashi asks. She nods and rushes to the living room.

"So what do you want to eat, you big klutz?" Tadashi asks playfully. I smile happily. Finally Tadashi's back to his normal self.

"Anything is fine." I reply honestly.

Tadashi finishes feeding me all too soon and is back with Lizzie. I follow him as he sits next to her. "You want to play a game?" He asks. Lizzie nods shyly.

"Can I play too?" I ask, hopeful. Tadashi gives me a sympathetic smile. "Sorry Hiro. It's kind of a two player only game. But like I said, when Lizzie leaves, I'll play with you." He promises.

But I want to play now. An idea suddenly hits me. Tadashi always pays attention to me when I get hurt! If I injure myself, he'll come running without me even having to ask him.

I rush to the kitchen and open the pantry. I take a deep breath and slam it closed, while my one of my toes hits it painfully. I scream in pain and Tadashi's at my side in seconds. "Hiro, what happened?" he asks, observing my throbbing red toe. I sniffle. "The door hit my toe Dashi." I whine. He hugs me in an attempt to soothe me and I hug back.

"You'll be okay. It doesn't seem to be swelling so it should go away soon. You're okay, right?" He asks calmly. I frown at the fact that he's leaving so suddenly. I want him to stay. I look around, but can't find anything to help me so I resort to crying. Tadashi looks worried.

"D-Dashi, i-it hurts a l-lot." I blubber. He kneels down and hugs me again. "Don't worry Hiro, I'm right here. It'll be okay, I promise." He says. I melt into the hug, but I'm too selfish. I can't let him go. I know he needs the money, but I don't want him to babysit. He doesn't pay attention to me.

"Don't leave Nii-san." I beg. He widens his eyes. In all honesty, I haven't called him Dashi or Nii-san lately because I felt too old to keep saying it. But now that I know it gets his attention, I'm gonna keep doing it. Tadashi suddenly grabs me by the shoulders and narrows his eyes, frightening me.

"Hiro, what's this really about? You didn't hurt yourself on purpose did you?" he asks, a bit of anger in his tone. I gulp and look away from him.

"Hiro, look at me." He demands. I refuse and he sighs in frustration. "Hiro, why are you hurting yourself?!" He asks. I sniffle for real this time and I think Tadashi knows.  
>"B-because you won't pay me attention. You just keep playing with L-Lizzie." I bawl, smashing my face into his shoulder. He pats me on the back gently. "Hiro, she's only here for today. The other hundreds of days; I'm going spend with you. You know I love you right?" he asks. I sniffle again. "M-maybe sometimes." I choke out, turning away from him. He pulls me into him again.<p>

"Hiro you bonehead don't hurt yourself to get my attention, okay? If you want me to pay attention to you, just tell me next time. I don't like seeing you in pain. Physical and emotional." He says.

I nod sheepishly. "Okay Tadashi." I promise.

"But hey, I didn't mind you calling me Dashi and wearing that t-shirt." He says teasingly. I blush and punch him in the side.  
>"That's for ruining the moment." I say with a smile of my own.<p>

He laughs and hugs me yet again. "You're crazy, a klutz, and a bonehead, but I love you anyway." He says. I laugh. "You too Dashi. You too." I say, smiling widely as I hear the doorbell ring, indicating that Lizzie is out of here.

So, I started a different story about Hiro's friends from chapter 19 because people asked me to. I don't know if I'm going to continue that due to the fact that Strawberry has a crush on Hiro and I'm not good at writing mushy romance stuff. But if enough people want me to continue it, I will try. Anyways, check it out if you want, if not, that's cool too.

Also, someone asked me to do a chapter on Hiro getting hit on by some creepo dude for this story XD. I'll try to write that after the next chapter because I kinda already had an idea for the next one. Happy reading.

-Girl you wouldn't expect.


	22. Chapter 22

Brothers

22

Ages

Hiro: 4

Tadashi: 18

(I know this is a huge age gap, but I got this really funny idea based on something that happened to me and my older brother a few years ago and I just HAD to write it. That's why they've got like a 14 year age gap. Sorry if that's a bit weird to anyone, but this was hilarious to me).

Normal POV

Tadashi Hamada was getting ready for school once again with Hiro watching intently.

"Dashi, can I come too?" He asked with hope, hands pressed together in a begging position. His eyes were wide with wonder as he awaited his brother's response.

"No Hiro." He said flatly, causing the toddler to fall in shock. His face represented that of crushed hope. He pouted and poked his lip out, causing Tadashi to feel guilty. He kneeled down to the toddler's eye level and looked at him with warm brown eyes.

"I'm sorry Hiro, but it's only for big kids. Don't worry though, one day you'll be so smart, you'll be in college too." Tadashi promised. Hiro looked hopeful once more.

"When?!" He asked eagerly. Tadashi looked nervous. "Well, you shouldn't worry about it just yet. Right now, you don't have to worry about being that smart." Tadashi said, ruffling Hiro's hair. The young one pulled back, still upset. He crossed his arms and pouted some more, hoping to change Tadashi's mind.

"Please Dashi? I'll be a good boy! I won't touch anything I'm not supposed to. I'll listen to everything you say. Please please pretty pleeeeaaase?!" he begged, giving him the puppy face.

"Gah! Hiro, not the face! Hiro…oh fine you ca- I mean no. no means NO otuoto. I'm sorry, but you just can't come." Tadashi said, almost breaking. Hiro narrowed his eyes at his brother who remained apologetic looking. "Fine, I'm going to the café next door. The people there are nicer." Hiro said childishly, poking his tongue out at Tadashi. The older brother merely shrugged and headed downstairs to eat breakfast.

When he was gone, Hiro sighed and dropped onto his bed. The toddler looked around until he found Tadashi's backpack. He blinked and stared at it for a while. The backpack was so big, it was larger than the tiny boy himself. Hiro suddenly broke into a huge grin. He bolted to the backpack and opened it. There was more than enough room for him to hide in it for a while. He popped himself inside and closed the zipper from inside it.

The boy was surprised that he could easily breathe in the bag, but he wasn't complaining. "Maybe Dashi won't even notice I'm in here." he whispered happily.

Tadashi came into the room a few minutes later and grabbed his backpack. "That's weird. It feels a bit heavier than usual. I thought I left my physics book at campus, but I guess not." He mused, walking downstairs.

"Bye honey. Oh where's Hiro? Send him down for breakfast will you?" Aunt Cass asked.

"He went to the café next door." Tadashi replied, heading out the door to his moped.

Hiro felt rapid movement and his heart raced with excitement. 'Wow! Dashi never takes me on his moped. This is awesome. I wonder if Dashi always feels this exhilarated when he rides it.' Hiro thought from inside the backpack.

The boy felt the moped stop and Tadashi get up. 'We must be here.' Hiro thought. He felt Tadashi walk and waited excitedly to see the college.

Finally he felt Tadashi place the backpack on the floor. "Hey, Wasabi, what's up?" he heard his brother ask, leaving the room.

Assuming Tadashi was gone, Hiro opened the backpack from inside and popped his head out. Getting his entire body out of the pack, he observed the room he was in. his eyes widened in wonder. "Woooooow." He breathed, taking it all in.

Hiro found a little label on the door that said 'Tadashi's Lab.' 'Wow, Dashi's got his own lab here. I wanna be smart like that too.' Hiro thought. Suddenly, he heard footsteps approaching the room and he panicked. Frantically looking for some place to hide, he dove for the closet and hid in a box.

"Yeah, so this is what I've been working on. It's a healthcare robot. I haven't gotten it anywhere near done, but I'm not giving up." He heard Tadashi say.

"Not bad Tadashi. What did Hiro think of it?" he heard a feminine voice say. "To be honest Honey Lemon, I didn't tell him yet." Tadashi said with a chuckle. "Why not?" she asked. Tadashi gave her a look. "You know how he is. Kid would get way too excited and beg me even more to come here and it's not exactly safe for a kid his age. I really want to tell him about Baymax, but maybe when he's a bit older." Tadashi explained.

"Ah I see. How old is he again?" Honey asked. "Four. Little guy asks me to come here almost every day and I always have to turn him down." Tadashi says.

"Well maybe he really is ready. You never know Tadashi. Anyways, Fred asked us to meet him in the commons for big news." Honey said, grabbing Tadashi's arm excitedly and pulling him away.

Once he was certain they were gone, Hiro came out of the closet. "Dashi doesn't think I'm smart enough? Well I'll prove him wrong. I'll learn stuff from here. Then he'll see I'm old enough to come to college with him." Hiro decided. The little boy slowly tiptoed out of Tadashi's lab and out to the open.

He saw something fly past his head and stared at it in awe. He wondered what it was and followed it as it flew across the room.

The flying orb stopped near some lady with a white lab coat. She noticed the boy and looked startled. "Oh, hello little one. Are you lost?" She asked. Hiro shook his head. "No ma'am. I'm here to learn." Hiro announced cutely. The lady gushed over him and his adorableness much to Hiro's dismay.

"Lady. Hey lady!" He cried, trying to get her attention off of his face.  
>"Oh yes? What is your name?" she asked with a bright smile.<p>

Hiro bit his lip. He didn't want to tell her his real name in fear that she may know Tadashi. He quickly racked his brain for an idea while the lady waited patiently.

"My name is Lisa." She said helpfully, hoping it would get Hiro comfortable enough to share his name.

"I'm Baymax." He said, saying the first name that popped into his head. He internally slapped himself. 'Baymax? Why didn't you just say your name was Tadashi you idiot.' Hiro scolded himself for sounding so stupid. The lady however, wasn't suspicious at all.

"Oh that's an adorable name for an adorable kid. So what are you doing here Baymax?" she asked him. Hiro blinked in disbelief. 'Well, she doesn't know Tadashi.' Hiro thought in relief.

"I'm here to learn. Can you explain what that orb was?" he asked curiously. The lady actually complied and explained all the science behind her flying green orb. Hiro was surprised to find that he understood it all too.

"Thanks Lisa." He said politely, earning himself a girlish squeal and hug from the lady. "Anytime Baymax. I hope I see you again. I can't believe you understood all of that. How old are you by the way?" Lisa asked.

Hiro thought about what he should say. He didn't want to say he was four because then Lisa would never let him go around the school all alone.

"I'm fifteen. I'm really short though. It's a medical condition. People make fun of me." He lied smoothly. Lisa was baffled. "Oh my goodness. I'm so sorry Baymax! Well, don't listen to them. You're a bright kid. Really bright to understand all this at fifteen. One day you'll be famous and rich and they'll be crying." Lisa assured. Hiro smile at this comment. "Thanks again Lisa. Bye." He called, leaving the lab.

Now Hiro was outside. He saw several buildings and tried to decide which one to check out next. 'The biggest one.' He thought with a grin.

He walked into the building to see kids everywhere. Old, young, boy, girl, tall, short, and more. Hiro _did_ stand out, but not as much as he had feared. People didn't stop to ask who he was or where he was going.

The boy looked up to see a banner with Robert Callaghan's face on it. Extremely awestruck, he stared at the banner and found that the man that Tadashi talked endlessly about was giving a lecture in room 20 C in about ten minutes. Hiro really wanted to go, so he tugged on a random guy's leg until he looked at him.

"Can you tell me where room 20 C is?" he asked the teenager. "Yeah, take the elevator to the second floor and find C-hall and it's over there." The teen replied, a bit surprised that a young kid was asking this, but didn't question it. Hiro thanked him and searched for an elevator.

Finding it, he went up to the second floor and located C-hall. He started toward it, but heard Tadashi's voice and froze.

"I can't believe he's giving a lecture either. You excited?" He heard his brother ask someone. Hiro quickly dived behind the wall.

"Not as much as you, you big nerd. But hey, it's pretty exciting." The girl with him responded.

"C'mon Gogo, this is epic." Tadashi claimed, walking into a room while she followed.

Hiro frowned. How was he supposed to attend the lecture if Tadashi was there? His brother would notice him in a heartbeat. Sighing, Hiro headed toward the elevator again but before he clicked the button, a black carton caught his attention. He walked over to it and read 'Lost and found.'

Assortments of jackets, sweaters, hoodies, and watches were strewn around in it. 'I'm sure people wouldn't mind if I borrowed some of this for a while. I mean, they _did_ lose this stuff. They must not care enough to look for it.' Hiro thought, looking through the lost and found. He snagged a purple hoodie and switched out his smaller blue one for it. He also found a pair of sunglasses and placed them on. Satisfied with how he looked, he headed back into the room.

Hiro gulped and widened his eyes, thankful that no one noticed due to the sunglasses. There were a lot of people in the room. He quickly grabbed a seat all the way in the back because Tadashi and his friend Gogo were seated in the front.

Robert Callaghan walked in and had an entire presentation prepared for this. He explained everything from basic to completely complex robotics and Hiro was beyond fascinated. 'I definitely want to do something with robotics now.' Hiro thought to himself. At the end of the lecture, Callaghan thanked everyone for attending and people stormed out, rushing to get to their next class or something other. A few stayed to talk to the professor, but Hiro started walking toward the door. Luck wasn't on his side just then though, because a voice stopped him.

"Hey, you. Stop for a minute will you?" it asked. Hiro stopped and took a deep breath. Turning around slowly, he uncertainly pointed to himself. "Me?" he asked weakly. The man nodded. It was none other than Professor Callaghan that stopped him.

"Take those sunglasses off, we're inside." He said with patience. Hiro obliged and stared at the professor with wide eyes. He couldn't deny that he was a bit afraid.

"Something tells me that that hoodie isn't yours. Am I right?" He asked softly. Hiro slowly nodded, taking it off. "Sir, I wasn't stealing it I swear! I was going to put it back in the lost and found right now, I swear!" Hiro cried in defense. To his surprise, the professor laughed.

"May I see the notes you took? If you don't mind?" the man asked gently. Hiro shrugged and pulled out the crumpled piece of papers from his khaki shorts and handed it to the professor. He took few notes, but sketched a lot of ideas next to them, incorporating what he learned. The professor seemed slightly impressed.

"What's your name?" he asked Hiro. The four year old froze. He didn't know how to respond. This man might've talked to Tadashi before. In that case, he might know who he was if he said his name was Hiro _or_ Baymax. "Well?" the professor asked, amused.

"Uh, Baymax." He said before he could stop himself. Hiro swore he saw the man smirk, but thought he imagined it when the professor smiled and stuck out his hand for him to shake.

"Nice to meet you Baymax. I'm Robert Callaghan. Tell me, how old are you?" he asked warmly. Hiro shook the hand. "I'm fifteen." He lied again. The professor raised his eyebrows, but didn't question the younger boy. "Well Baymax. These sketches are pretty impressive for a fifteen year old. Although, I feel like I've seen you before somewhere. Do you maybe have a brother or sister?" He asked.

Hiro widened his eyes. "Oh no sir! I'm an only child." He said too quickly. Callaghan smiled amusingly. "I see. Well it was a pleasure to teach you Baymax." He said with a curt nod. "It was a pleasure to learn." Hiro responded, rushing out of the room.

He dumped the purple hoodie and sunglasses back into the lost and found bin and grabbed his hoodie back from it.

"So _you_ took my hoodie?" a voice snarled behind him. Hiro gulped and turned around to see a man at least three times his size looking angry. "N-no. I was returning it to the lost and found." Hiro said with a stutter.

"Don't gimmie that BS. I saw you take it off. You stole it and then put it back, thinking no one would notice." The guy said, cracking his knuckles. Hiro gasped in fear and back up slowly. "L-listen, I-I'm sorry. W-we c-can work th-this out." Hiro reasoned.

"I think we can." The guy said, cracking his neck and advancing toward Hiro in anger. "P-please!" Hiro begged. The teenager ignored Hiro and kept coming closer. The little boy panicked and started running.

"Hey! Get back here you thieving little pipsqueak!" he yelled, chasing after Hiro. Hiro didn't turn back as he ran. Disregarding the elevator, he bolted down the stairs, tears of fear poking out of his eyes. He refused to let them out though. "You're gonna get yours!" He heard the teen boom out. Hiro frantically looked for somewhere to hide and dove into a random room. He heard the other guy stomp right past the room he was in and sighed in relief. Then he turned around to see where he was.

It was an empty classroom. Hiro found a stack of textbooks and picked one up titled 'Physics'. Opening the book, he read at least four chapters of it before he heard someone open the door. Dropping the book, Hiro looked at the person who entered.

Excuse me, what are you doing in here?" they asked, flipping the light switch on. It was a young girl. Around Tadashi's age. She had dark brown hair that ended at her shoulders. Bright red glasses adorned her face. She looked strict, but not mean.

"I-I got lost." He admitted. "Okay, well where do you need to go?" she asked. "The chemistry lab." Hiro said a bit uncertainly. The girl nodded. "Alright, let's go. I'll take you there." She said, reaching for his hand. Hiro accepted this and followed her.

"So what's your name kid?" she asked. "Baymax." Hiro replied more easily now. "Nice name. I'm Chelsea." She responded. "So what do you major in?" Hiro asked, getting used to how questions went here.

"I'm pre-med. Are you here with your brother or sister?" She asked kindly. "Uh, yeah actually. How'd you know?" He asked. She chuckled light heartedly. "You look a little young to be going to college." She responded. Hiro blushed and looked away. "But don't worry. I'm sure you'll do great things someday. You probably have to if your sibling brought you here." she said politely. Hiro smiled at her. "Thank you." He said. "No problem. Ah, here we are. You good Baymax?" she asked Hiro nodded and walked into the chemistry lab.

He observed a unique colored test tube before reading the label on it. 'Do NOT drink.' Hiro walked past it and was stopped by a guy in a lab coat this time. "Whoa kid. What are you doing here?" he asked in a not so kind voice. "I'm here to learn. Can you teach me how to mix chemicals?" Hiro asked nicely. The guy warmed up noticeably.

At first, he was talking to Hiro as if he were a baby, but gradually he talked to him as if they were the same age as Hiro absorbed the knowledge and mixed up a few chemicals himself. "Well thanks, but I gotta go now." Hiro said, heading to the door. "Hey wait kid. What's your name?" he asked. Hiro didn't even miss a beat before replying "Baymax." The teen with the lab coat waved his bye. "See you Baymax. I'm Cody by the way." He said as Hiro left.

Tadashi's POV

I was walking past the commons when I heard someone say something that really caught my attention.

"Yeah, Baymax was super smart too. Understood everything I was saying with no problem." I heard her say. I turn to see one of the robotics majors, Lisa.

"Hey Lisa, sorry I couldn't help but hear your conversation a bit. Who exactly is Baymax?" I questioned. "Oh, some kid came up to the lab and asked me how I made the flying orb. He was really smart and caught on quickly. So smart and so young. His name was Baymax." Lisa explained. I was beyond confused.  
>What did he look like?" I asked.<p>

"Mess of black hair. Adorable big brown eyes. Really smallish." Lisa listed off. "How old was he?" I ask anxiously, already having a cue about who 'Baymax' was. "15." Lisa responded, throwing me off guard.

"Uh, alright. Thanks Lisa." I say, walking toward my lab.

I saw Professor Callaghan approach me in the midst and stopped. "Yes sir?" I ask. "Tadashi, you mentioned having a little brother, correct?" he asked. "Y-yes sir. I can't believe you remembered." I say. "Does he show signs of intelligence? Like above average?" he asked me.

"Uh, I don't believe so sir. He's just a normal four year old." I reply.  
>"Four." He muses. I cock my head to the side. "Sir, is something funny about that?" I ask. He chuckles. "It's just, you said you were working on a robot right? Named Baymax?" Callaghan questioned. I nod slowly, not following. "Have a good day Mr. Hamada." Callaghan said, walking away. I was even more confused now, but I kept on walking toward my lab. Suddenly, I got a phone call from Aunt Cass.<p>

"Honey, have you seen Hiro?" she asks through the other end.

"No Aunt Cass. He isn't home?" I ask, not as surprised as I would've been had I gotten this call a few minutes ago.

"No. I can't find him. He's not at the café next door either!" she cries in alarm.

"Aunt Cass, don't worry. I think I know where he is. Don't freak out, he's with me." I reassure her. She sounds relieved and says bye and that Hiro's in big trouble when we get home. I hang up and open the door to my lab. I groan. I thought for sure Hiro would be here, but he's not. I see that my backpack's open and I look inside. Nothing seems to be taken out so I pick it up. That's when I realize that it's lighter than it was this morning.

I doubt Hiro climbed into my backpack in an attempt to follow me to school, but the facts _do_ seem to add up. I mean, some bushy black haired kid with big brown eyes who claims his name is Baymax of all names shows up today of all days when my backpack seemed a little heavier than usual this morning. I don't know what to think of except to keep searching for 'Baymax', assuming it'll lead me to Hiro.

I walk past a few people, one of which uses the name Baymax again.  
>"And then Baymax managed to copy my formula element for element. Looked like the kid was five too." I heard Cody say. Cody was one of the chemistry majors.<p>

"Hey Cody, what'd Baymax look like? Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop." I say in the process.

"No problem Tadashi. He was really small, probably about five years old or so. Black hair, lots of it. Brown eyes I think if I can remember right. Also, a tooth gap when he smiled." Cody responded. "Thanks Cody. Bye." I say, taking my leave.

Well, that's all I needed to hear. Hiro had snuck his way into college with me and was pestering my college mates. Then, something caught my attention all of a sudden. I walk back up to Cody and tap his shoulder.

"Yeah what's up Tadashi?" he asks. "Cody, did you say he made a chemical compound?" I ask in shock. Cody nodded eagerly. "See that's the wicked part. Small kid mixed together a compound just like I taught him. Little genius is probably in the extreme gifted and talented program." Cody says with a proud smile.

I was astonished. Hiro. My baby brother. Four years old. Cried yesterday about not getting a cookie, but managed to memorize a chemical equation. Managed to comprehend Lisa's levitating orb. I did NOT give the kid enough credit. He's FOUR. I needed to find him and quick.

Hiro's POV

I couldn't believe what was going on. I was in the commons, surrounded by people. They were all asking me questions like how I knew what I did and how I understood it. I was overwhelmed and what made it even better is that everyone seemed to know my name. Well, my fake name at least. They all kept chanting "Baymax! Baymax!" I blushed from all the attention and silently told myself that this was the best idea I ever had.

"Then, I heard an all too familiar voice call out "Hello _Baymax_." I froze on my spot in the middle of everyone and widened my eyes.

Tadashi's POV

"What exactly are you doing here _Baymax_?" I ask with a raised eyebrow. Hiro gulped and nervously chuckled. He approached me with a big grin. "H-hey Tadashi. What's up? How was school?" He asks nervously, rubbing his arm.

"Alright, three questions. How did you get here, although I have a good idea? Why did you choose your name as Baymax? And how did you manage to do all this science stuff?" I question him. He blinks at me. I think he's surprised that I'm not angry.

"I hid in your backpack, I heard you talking to a girl in your lab about how you were building Baymax and I just sort of picked that name for some reason, and it was really easy once someone explained it to me honestly." He says softly.

"Okay, but why bonehead? Why were you so desperate to come with me to college?" I ask him.

"You said I wasn't smart enough Dashi, but I thought I was so I had to prove you wrong. And I think you were wrong. These people said I was smart for a 15 year old when I'm only four." He said proudly. Everyone around us suddenly gasped. "YOU'RE FOUR?!" they all asked in shock. Hiro nodded shyly. I looked at them in disbelief. "You believed him when he told you he was 15?" I ask in disbelief.

"Well, he did say he was a midget and was teased about it in high school." I hear several mumble. I give Hiro a look and he shrugs. "Hey, they're the ones who believed me." He defended.

"What else did you learn?" I ask, bewildered. Hiro smiles widely. "Lot's! I even went to the lecture that Professor Callaghan gave while you were in there. You didn't even notice me. I guess I'm totally ready for college Dashi!" he exclaims happily. I ruffle his hair to his dismay. "Calm down Hiro. You've got to go to primary school first. But maybe you can join me a lot sooner than I thought." I promise him. He seems pleased with my answer. Then, he yawns. Poor guy must be tired from an entire day of college.

I shake my head. "Well bro, c'mon." I say, grabbing his hand.  
>"Where are we going?" He asks.<p>

"Home. You're majorly grounded by Aunt Cass for sneaking out of the house in my backpack." I say.

"Awwwwww." Hiro whines as I laugh.

Well, that's that. I thought the backpack thing was funny, but maybe it's just me. Anyways, review please!

Seriously if there's anything I can do better, tell me!


	23. Chapter 23

Brothers

23

Ages

Hiro: 18

Tadashi: 22

Side note: this was a request by like two different people. In all honesty, this was awkward for me to right, but I tried my best. Sorry if you don't like it, but thanks if you do!

Normal POV

"I can't believe you agreed to this Tadashi. Guess you're not such a stick in the mud after all." Hiro said with a wide smile as the brothers made their way to a bar.  
>"Yeah yeah Hiro. You owe me big time. I can't believe Gogo convinced me to bring you to a bar." Tadashi muttered. Hiro laughed. "Gogo's awesome." He concluded. "Whatever. You're not getting anything crazy though so don't get your hopes too high." Tadashi warned. "Whatever." Hiro said, mocking Tadashi.<p>

"This is a bad idea." Tadashi groaned. "I think you mean great." Hiro corrected as they walked through the door when Hiro flashed his fake ID.

"What can I get you _fine_ young gentlemen?" the bartender asked, eyeing Hiro flirtatiously. Hiro tried to hold in his laughter while Tadashi looked beyond annoyed. "Get us a coke for now thanks." Tadashi snarled, getting rid of the bartender for now. Hiro burst into laughter at Tadashi's expression. "Boy I wish you could see your own face right now because it's pretty hilarious." Hiro said. Tadashi rolled his eyes.

"That guy was a creep. He's at least six years older than you. What a creeper." Tadashi mumbled. Hiro laughed again. "Calm down bro. he probably thought I was 21 at least so that's more like a three year age difference in his eyes. Not a complete creeper." Hiro reasoned.

"Are you telling me you wouldn't have minded if that guy continued to hit on you?" Tadashi asked, bewildered. "Well I mean, he's not ugly." Hiro said nonchalantly. "You're gay?!" Tadashi spat out in shock. "I don't have a preference." Hiro said flatly. Tadashi eyed him wearily.

Then, Hiro burst into more laughter. "I'm totally pulling your leg." He said, roaring in giggles. Tadashi elbowed him roughly. "Not funny." He said. "I thought it was." Hiro said, ceasing his laughter.

"Here's your cokes. One for the grouch and one for the cutie with the adorable laugh." He said with a wink in Hiro's direction. Tadashi clenched his fist and glared at the man who paid him no attention. The guy sat down across from them and stared at Hiro.

"So my name's Mitch, what's yours?" he asked with a smirk. Hiro almost choked on his coke. He wasn't used to people flirting with him, let alone be so suggestive sounding. He blushed in embarrassment and refused to look at Mitch.

"His name is leave us the fuck alone and do your job before I call the cops for harassment." Tadashi growled in irritation. Mitch narrowed his eyes back at Tadashi, but none the less, left to work.

"God that was embarrassing." Hiro groaned. "Yeah. I told you he was a creep." Tadashi said. Hiro then smirked. "But c'mon Tadashi, who wouldn't resist this?" Hiro asked, flexing his 'muscles.'

While it was true that puberty left Hiro with a much taller body, he was still lanky. His stomach was toned, but his arms were noodle-like as well as his legs.

Tadashi scoffed. "Whatever. I've got more beef in one arm then you've got in your entire body." He said, flexing. Hiro rolled his eyes. "Yeah right." Hiro said. "It's true Hiro. You're a cupcake, while I'm a beefcake." Tadashi said playfully. Hiro laughed. "That was actually pretty funny." He said, taking another sip of his coke.

"Hey Tadashi, this coke tastes a bit strange." Hiro commented, holding the glass up to his older brother. Tadashi eyed it carefully before looking angry.

"That idiot spiked your coke. Unbelievable. How dare he?! I knew he was a fuckin creeper!" Tadashi said angrily, slamming a fit on the bar. Hiro tried to calm his brother down, but Tadashi was having none of it. He furiously called the bartender over to them and Mitch approached them both.

"How dare you spike his drink?! Who the hell do you think you are?!" he demanded. Mitch smirked. "What are you gonna do about it? Wouldn't want people to find out he's underage would we?" The man asked, hinting that he knew Hiro wasn't old enough to be in the bar. Tadashi couldn't respond to that and it pissed him off as Mitch smirked in victory. The bartender left to serve a drink to someone else as Hiro patted Tadashi's shoulder.

"Okay, so maybe he _is_ a creep." Hiro said weakly. Tadashi rolled his eyes. "Let's get out of here." he said, getting up. Hiro frowned and stopped him. "C'mon Tadashi. That was just one creepy bar guy. I'm sure he won't bother us if we ignore him." Hiro reasoned. "Besides, I wanna enjoy my first time at a bar." Hiro said goofily. Tadashi gave in at Hiro's eager face. "Fine, but only an hour. Two hours tops." He said firmly. Hiro complied and went to the dance floor.

Tadashi sat back down at the bar and finished his coke.

"So what's your deal anyway? You his boyfriend or something?" Mitch asked, appearing out of nowhere. "Not that it's any of your business, but he's my brother, so I'd greatly appreciate it if you would quit staring at him like he's a piece of meat." Tadashi said, following Mitch's gaze. "If he's your brother, it shouldn't bother you if I hit on him." Mitch countered. "It does if creepers like you do." Tadashi growled. "You better watch that temper of yours before I kick you out of _my_ bar." Mitch taunted, enjoying the pissed off look on Tadashi's face.

Tadashi stood up and went to talk to some girl on the other side of the bar; away from Mitch.

Hiro's POV

I was just hanging with some girl when I felt someone grab me from behind. "Tadashi?" I asked with a laugh. I was high off adrenaline.

"Try again." The voice said. I shuddered in discomfort when the voice did not belong to my older brother's.

"Wait, creepy bar guy?" I sputtered. "It's Mitch actually, and yes. C'mon, don't you want a _real_ drink?" Mitch asked suggestively. "As fun as that sounds, I kind of promised my brother that I wouldn't drink anything alcoholic." I replied. "Well what he doesn't know won't hurt him now will it?" He practically purred in my ear. I shuddered again and looked for where Tadashi was. Clearly he wasn't near enough if he wasn't killing Mitch right now.

I finally spot him, but he's a bit too far away from me for my liking. Mitch catches my eye and I swear I hear him growl. "Come on." He says gruffly, yanking me by my arm somewhere upstairs. I try to tug away from him, but he's too strong, or rather I'm too weak. "Quit struggling and this'll be less painful." He says.

"Tadashi! TADASHI!" I scream, hoping he'll hear me. Mitch covers my mouth. "Too bad no one heard that. I made sure the music was extra loud just for this." Mitch said evilly. I lick his hand in an attempt to get it away from my mouth, but he just chuckles darkly. I curse myself for still being a lanky mess. I'm not strong enough to push him away from me even at eighteen years old.

He drags me out on the rooftop and pins me against the wall. "Look man, this is illegal. Don't make me report you." I threaten, struggling from his grasp. He doesn't seem fazed by my threat which confuses me.

"It's also illegal for anyone under 21 to come into a bar and drink alcohol but that didn't stop you did it?" he asks darkly. I don't know what to say, so I stay silent, trying to get out of his hold.

"Quit struggling or this will hurt a lot more than it has to." He says, gripping my butt. "Get off of me you creep!" I demand, struggling harder. He slams my head into the wall. "Ah!" I cry out in pain. I attempt to fight back, but the guy's way stronger than me. I'm defenseless.

He's got his hand under my shirt and he's about two centimeters from my face before I finally feel him tugged off of me.

"You little bastard! Get your filthy fuckin hands off my brother!" I heard Tadashi say, slamming Mitch on the floor. I widened my eyes. He literally came just in time. I blatantly stared as Tadashi repeatedly punched and kicked Mitch who was lying on the floor, groaning in pain after each blow. Tadashi didn't show any signs of stopping and it scared me. He was being merciless, something he told me to never be.

I run over to him and pull him back with everything I had. It surprised me that I was able to move him given that I couldn't move Mitch. That creepy bartender was stronger than I thought.

Tadashi looked at me with angry eyes that soon faded enough to show confusion. "Tadashi no." I say softly. He looks at his bloody fist and then back at Mitch. He looked ashamed of himself. Mitch looked pretty bad. Like, needs to go to the hospital bad. A few more blows from my brother, and I'm sure Tadashi could've killed the guy.

"Little cretin made me lose control." Tadashi finally said with malice. He was starting to scare me more than even Mitch did so I pulled him in a small embrace, hoping to calm him down.

He finally snapped out of it and gently patted me back before pulling away.

"You're not hurt are you?" he asks with concern. I shake around a bit to show him I can walk. "I'm fine." I say.  
>"That idiot didn't do anything did he?" He asks to make sure.<p>

"I promise Tadashi, I'm fine." I say. He sighs in relief and grabs my hand, luring me out of the bar. "No more bars for you." He says as if it's final.

"Until I'm 21 right?" I ask weakly, knowing this is a lost argument. "EVER." he says firmly, gripping my hand tighter.  
>"Geez Tadashi alright. Ease up though, you're gonna crush my hand." I say, wincing a bit. Tadashi lets go. I rub my hand to ease it up.<p>

"Sorry. He just made me so mad. What kind of monster tries to take advantage of an eighteen year old? Especially when they're like 30. That's just wrong." Tadashi says, eyes closed shut.

"Hey, it's okay. I'm fine. You'll always be here to protect me. I'm sure of it." I say, trying to make him feel better. He cracks a light smile.  
>"I guess what I'm afraid of is that maybe I won't be." Tadashi says bitter sweetly as we walk home, the rest of the night silent.<p>

So…there's that. Sorry if that's not what you were expecting, I didn't really know what the people who asked for this chapter wanted exactly so I did my best.

Anyways, review if you want! Seriously, I live to read my reviews. Love you all so very much! Have a happy new year!

-girl you wouldn't expect


	24. Chapter 24

Brothers

24

Ages

Hiro: 5

Tadashi: 10

Tadashi's POV

It was late at night and Hiro was not going to sleep.

Not because he was having nightmares. Not because he thought there was a monster under his bed. Not because he was high off of sugar, but because he simply didn't want to.

"Dashi! I'm not tired. I'm not going to sleep." He declared with crossed arms.

"Hiro please. It's late. I want to sleep." I say. He pokes his lip out and huffs. "No Dashi. I'm not a baby." He announces. I sigh.

"Well you have a cute widdle baby face!" I exclaim in a mock old people voice, pinching his cheeks. "Gross! Stop Dashi." He says, moving away from me with a laugh. I laugh along with him before letting out a big yawn.  
>"Alright bonehead, get some sleep so I can too." I say, pointing to his bed. He sits down on the floor next to my bed.<p>

"No Dashi. No sleep for me. I'm not tired." He says stubbornly.

"Please Hiro. If you sleep now, I'll buy you a jar of gummy bears tomorrow." I promise him. He looks like he's about to give in, but decides against it at the last minute. "But I'm not tired." He whines.

I decide that instead of arguing with him, I should do something else. I pick him up and place him on my bed. He sits cross legged on it, refusing to lay down. I plop down next to him and seat him on my lap.

"I'm still not sleeping Dashi. Even if you try to make me." Hiro says, sticking his tongue out at me in defiance. I shrug. "Okay Hiro, you win. I'll just let you sit here and do nothing then." I say. He smiles smugly, as if he's won.

Then, I run my hands through his hair. He flinches and pulls his head away, glaring at me. "No!" he cries, protesting. I hold my hands up in surrender. "Okay Hiro. How about a shoulder rub? A massage?" I ask innocently. Hiro pokes his lip out, thinking it over. "Okay, but no hair touching." He demands seriously. I agree and begin to massage his shoulders. He sighs in content and leans back, easing into my arms.

"Feels good?" I ask. He nods, too mesmerized to speak. I continue to rub his shoulders and I notice that his eyes close in tranquility, but he still doesn't yawn or show signs of exhaustion. I try to find a pressure point, but can't.

"This feels goooooood." Hiro hums. I smile at him. He's such a dork, but he's my little dork. I finally hit a spot in his neck that makes him let out a sound of pleasure. I stifle a laugh as he leans further into me. "Enjoying this?" I ask. "Yeeeeeeeessssss." He stretches out, practically laying down on me. I decide to go in for the secret weapon now. I slowly, ever so slowly, reach for the end of his hair with one hand and continue to massage his shoulders with the other one. He slightly stiffens and gets up a bit, but soon relaxes as I ruffle his hair lightly.

He leans into me, but doesn't lay down again. I eventually work my way to have both my hands messing around in his hair. It's so soft and fluffy and it makes my hands feel soft too. I smile as I finally see him crack a yawn.

Touching his hair makes him tired and he knows it. That's why he hates people ruffling it, it makes him want to sleep. I'm probably the only one who knows this and he hates me for it.

I work on a knot that's tangled up pretty badly as he lets out a breath of bliss, eyes refusing to open now. I untangle it and continue to massage his hair. He snuggles into me and I think he's about to go to sleep.

I fluff up his hair after I get all the knots out and let my hands down. They're pretty tired now, but they've got enough energy to pick up Hiro gently and carry him to his bed.

I try to softly place him down without waking him up, but the little bonehead manages to clench his arms around my neck tightly and he won't let go. I try to pry his hands off gently, but they're clinging on too strongly. I know he's sleeping because he's letting out soft breaths of hot air onto my neck. I sigh and carry him back to my bed. I lay down and he's right on top of me.

"Unbelievable." I whisper, trying to get him off of me. He won't budge and I just give up. As I'm drifting off to sleep, I feel myself roll over, forgetting all about Hiro and he goes falling off the bed. I gasp in horror as he hits the ground with a thud. I painfully look down, seeing if he's okay.

Unfortunately, he woke up and now he's crying. I scoop him up and place him on my bed as he cries.

"D-Dashi, wh-why d-did you do th-that?" He asks between sobs. I feel a tug at my heart at his words. I pull him into me, but he yanks himself away, looking scared of me. I feel a stab of pain shoot up in me.

There are bad feelings I've had in my life. Getting falsely accused of cheating on a test, getting a girl to laugh at me, getting scolded for eating Aunt Cass's inventory, but none of those felt as horrible as this. Hiro, my baby brother looked genuinely _afraid_ of me. He looked like he lost all trust in me. Like I was going to hurt him.

"H-Hiro, it was an accident, I'm sorry." I explain, voice cracking. I try to reach for him, but he backs up, still scared. There's still tears coming out of his eyes, but he stops sobbing. Sniffling, he sits on the edge of my bed, looking at the floor. I feel terrible. I should've paid more attention. My carelessness made my brother scared of me.

"Hiro, I'm so sorry. I just got careless. I'm really sorry. I didn't mean for you to get hurt, I promise." I say to him. He looks at me with sad eyes. "P-promise?" he asks uncertainly. "Of course Hiro. I would never hurt you, I swear it." I say, crossing my heart. He looks at me as if he's deciding whether to believe me or not before he stick out his extremely tiny pinky at me.  
>"Pinky swear?" he asks seriously. I smile in relief. "Pink swear." I say, linking our pinkies. Mine seems so much larger compared to his bony little one and I chuckle. "Okay Dashi. I forgive you." He says, leaning into me once more.<p>

"Good. I can't stand you looking at me like you're scared of me." I say honestly, pulling him as close to me as possible, not willing to risk letting him fall again.

"Me either Dashi. I don't like being scared of you." He says, closing his eyes again. I run my fingers gently through his hair as I watch sleep overtake him again. My cute little baby brother. I hope I never let him fall like that again.


	25. Chapter 25

Brothers

25

Ages

Hiro: 4

Tadashi: 10

Hiro's POV

"Do you think it'll rain Dashi? I hope it does!" I exclaim, noticing the darker than usual sky.

"I think so Hiro. It's getting pretty cloudy. You wanna head home?" Tadashi asks me.

"But I'm not done with my smoothie." I say, holding up my glass.  
>"Alright, we'll wait." He says.<p>

"How come no one's here Dashi? It's empty." I muse. Tadashi looks around too.

"My best bet is because it's about to rain. The news said there may be a storm coming. You better hurry and finish your smoothie so we can get home before it gets nasty." He advises. I agree and begin slurping my smoothie down at fast paces.

I stop for a second to look at Tadashi with worry. "Dashi, there won't be thunder, right? Not that I'm scared!" I say quickly, hoping we won't think I'm a big baby.

"Even if there is, we'll be safe at home before we have to worry about it, okay?" he says to me. "Okay Dashi. I believe you." I tell him, finishing up my drink. I toss it in the trash and tell Tadashi I'm ready to go.

Tadashi grabs his jacket and we head out. It's a bit cooler than before so Tadashi puts his jacket on. "Hiro, zip up your hoodie." He tells me as we walk. "But I'm not that cold." I reply. "Just do it Hiro. I don't want you catching a cold. Do it for me?" he asks nicely. I oblige. Tadashi usually knows what's best for me, so I decide to listen to him.

"Thanks bud." He says, giving me a pat on the shoulder. I grin up cheekily at him. "You're the boss." I salute him mockingly. He laughs and picks me up to spin me.  
>"Dashi! We're in public!" I protest, trying not to giggle at being spun around.<br>"So?" he counters.

"So!? So people will see." I reason. That doesn't seem to bother Tadashi as he places me on his shoulders. I grab onto his in turn for safety.

"You're silly Dashi." I say with a giggle.

"No, you're silly." He says, putting his hat on my head. It looks all funny because my bush of hair makes it stick up funnily. "Dashi, this looks silly." I say, pointing to the hat. "Well silly people tend to look silly." He says with a goofy grin. I laugh at him and put the hat back on his head.

"You're crazy." I marvel as we head home. "Learned from you." He replies smoothly. "Nuh uh. I'm normal." I protest.

"Normal people don't hang from their brother's shoulders." He retaliates.

"Well crazy people are the ones who _put_ their brothers on their shoulders." I reply. He tries to think of something to say, but can't, so he puts me down and starts tickling me. "Ah! D-Dashi! Stop!" I cry, inching away from him. When I manage to get away, I feel a drop land on my face. I blink and look up at the dark gray sky. Two more drops. I look at the ground to see it dotted with raindrops everywhere.

Tadashi looks at me and wipes the rain drops off of my face. We're only a block away from the café, but Tadashi still grabs my hand and runs as fast as he can.

"Dashi wait. Can we play in the rain a bit?" I ask hopefully.  
>"Hiro, I know you want to, but I don't want you to catch a cold." He says sadly. I frown and pocket my hands. Looking at Tadashi with big eyes and pouty lip, I try again.<br>"Please Dashi? Only for a little bit. Only like five minutes!" I beg. I see him cracking. "Well…oh alright. Five minutes. That's it." He says firmly, letting go of my hand. I can see the café from here so it shouldn't be hard to run back in when we're done.

I feel the rain pouring down a bit faster now. I laugh in happiness and spin around on my own, urging Tadashi to do the same. He follows my lead. I stop spinning when I got an idea. "Dashi! Dashi, let's dance in the rain!" I cry. Tadashi gives me a raised eyebrow. "And I'm the silly one?" he asks with a smirk. I blush a bit and smack him in the side. "We're both silly, now let's dance." I demand. He just laughs and watches me dance my pants off (not literally).

Tadashi all too soon says that we have to go. I can understand why though. It's raining so hard, I can barely see anything five inches away from me. I feel Tadashi grab my hand and pull us both into the café.

"Oh thank goodness you both are home. Come in, come! I'll go get towel, blankets and start some hot coco." Aunt Cass rambles, pulling us both into the dry and warm living room. Tadashi and I are both soaked so we don't dare sit on the couch. I start shivering from the coldness and Tadashi notices. He unzips my hoodie and takes it off of me, causing the blast of heat of the living room to find its way onto my arms and neck. I sigh in content.  
>"Dashi, you should take yours off too." I say, pointing to his jacket. He nods and begins unzipping it. He throws both mine and his on the floor next to us and huddles his arms together. I lean into him. I learned from somewhere that being close with someone while you're cold saves heat or something. Tadashi allows this and we shiver together.<p>

Aunt Cass comes back soon and wraps us up in towels. She rubs the towel on my hair rapidly and I whine in protest. "Oh hold still Hiro. It'll make you colder if you don't." she points out. I let her finish. When she's done drying us, she tosses us each a blanket. We wrap ourselves up while she leaves to make us hot coco. I wrapped myself up pretty sloppily and I accidently cover my face in the process. Tadashi laughs and helps me fix it.

"Thanks." I say. "No problem you big goofball." He says, plopping himself down on the couch. I copy him, but instead of sitting, I lay my entire body down on the couch. I'm relaxing and awaiting the hot chocolate when I feel a sudden weight drop on me.

"Mmph!" I yell as it blocks my face, including my mouth.

I hear husky laughter and inwardly groan.

"Dashi, get oomph of me." I struggle to say. He lifts himself up slightly and I glare at him. "You're heavy." I conclude. He gives me a teasing look and proceeds to lay down on top of me, though he leaves my face alone this time.

I sigh. "You're silly." I say again. He shrugs. "You and me both bonehead." He replies.

Aunt Cass comes back and we both sit up to accept the warm beverage. Tadashi downs it in one go, but I savor mine.

Aunt Cass looks out the window and groans. "This is bad. I think a flood's coming. Really bad for business." She says dramatically. I giggle at her. "It's okay Aunt Cass. Rain is fun." I say. She wrinkles her nose at me.

"We'll just have to wait it out." She says, sitting on the couch next to us.

"How long will it last Aunt Cass?" Tadashi asks.  
>"I don't know kiddo. Maybe a day or two at most if we're lucky." She says.<p>

Before I know it, it's pitch black outside, Aunt Cass and Tadashi are sleeping, and I'm awake. I'm tired though, and I'm starting to go to sleep. Before I can, I hear a loud boom and I bounce up from the couch, startled.

I look out the window cautiously and see a bright flash. I widen my eyes and rub them, hoping I only imagined it. I hate thunder. It's loud and scary. You have to be crazy not to be scared of it.

I hear another loud boom and fall off the couch this time. I rub my arm to sooth the sudden pain and close my eyes, hoping that was the last noise to come. But luck wasn't on my side.

I heard yet another loud boom and jump under the blanket to feel better, but it doesn't comfort me. I'm still afraid and tears stream down my face. I take a deep breath and try what Tadashi told me to do if I was ever scared. Imagine it away. I try to, but another crashing noise of terror blocked my imagination out and filed it with fear. I cry out in fear, then cover my mouth. I have to be careful not to wake Aunt Cass or Tadashi. Then I think 'How could I wake them up if this loud thunder can't.' I shake my head and tug the blanket closer to me.

The thunder roars its call twice as loud at me as before and I drop the blanket in fright. I consider waking up Aunt Cass, but she gets mood swings really easily and I don't want to upset her. I think about waking up Tadashi, but he already looks out for me enough. I can't just take advantage of him.

I wonder how something so great can bring something so bad. I love rain, but hate thunder. I wouldn't mind it so much if it wasn't so mean and loud.

The thunder roars again and I can't help the tears that fall off of my face. I huddle myself in my arms and shiver in fright. I pray and hope it'll end soon. I'm too scared. I wish I was brave like Tadashi, but I'm not. I'm a baby because I'm scared of thunder.

Suddenly, I feel a warm presence approach me and wrap me in a tight embrace.  
>"You okay bonehead?" I hear him ask. I'd know that voice and nickname in my sleep. I sigh in sheer relief and hug him back as tightly as I can.<p>

"Dashi! Dashi make it go away." I beg him, tears lacing my face.

"Shh, you're okay Hiro. I'm here now. Don't worry." He whispers to me soothingly. I ease up from my tense self and let Tadashi comfort me like he always does.

"You're fine. I won't let the thunder scare you." He promises.  
>"How?" I ask with a sniffle.<p>

"Like this!" he cries out, attacking my belly with soft tickles. I erupt into a fit of breathless giggles and try to pull away, but Tadashi won't allow it. He holds me firmly in place and tickles. About two more loud booms of thunder come, but I'm not scared now that Tadashi's here with me.

He stops his assault and rubs my shoulder comfortingly. I smile and snuggle into him. He pick me up and puts me on the couch while sitting next to me. "Better?" he asks. I nod in a heartbeat, grateful he was there for me.

"Hey, why didn't you wake me up when you got scared?" he asks me softly. I look away from him and twiddle my fingers around a bit.

"I didn't want to bother you." I answer. He pulls me into him again and bonks me lightly on the head.

"Listen to me bonehead. You never bother me. Well, only when you try really hard." He says with teasing in his voice, but then turns serious again. "But really Hiro. You're not bothering me. I promise you. When you're scared, don't hesitate to wake me up. Okay?" he asks me.

"Okay Dashi. But how did you wake up?" I ask. He leans down to me and scans my face. "It's a secret. Promise you won't tell anyone?" he asks me seriously. I widen my eyes and hold out my pinky. "Pinky swear." I say. We link pinkies and he whispers in my ear, "I was scared too." He says.

"You were scared?! But you're not scared of anything." I say in amazement. He gives me a look.

"Of course I am. I'm scared of thunder, losing you, failing classes." He lists off. I hug him. "You don't have to be scared Dashi. I'm here for you." I promise him. He chuckles and ruffles my hair (to my dismay).

"Thanks Hiro. That makes me feel a lot better." He says, leaning his head on my shoulder. I lean my head on his head in the process and we doze off.

I could've sworn that the thunder got louder, but I was okay. I had Dashi to protect me. As long as I knew he was here, I would be fine.

SO for the next few chapters, I'll just be taking requests. Fill me up with suggestions all you want. But please, no more asking if Hiro gets abducted by pedophiles

Those are pretty disturbing to write.

Sorry.

-girl you wouldn't expect


	26. Chapter 26

Brothers

26

Ages

Hiro: 10

Tadashi: 18

Alright so this short is an idea I'm using off of a review that a guest posted. It asked for me to write about how Hiro and Tadashi gets lost in the woods. But of course me being me, I'm gonna put some twists in it. Hope you like it

Oh, and in case I didn't mention it before guys, I love all of y'all that like my story. Or even if you don't like it I love you. You're probably a good person at the end of the day.

But seriously, thank y'all for all the support you've given me. I started this story thinking, 'Hey, maybe I'll get like 10 reviews if I'm lucky', but y'all are just so frickin awesome! Your positive feedback just makes me want to keep writing and writing. Thanks again and I hope y'all like this chapter

Normal POV

Hiro lay on the floor of the living room face down, waiting for his older brother to show up any minute. The carpet scratched his nose and he knew he was going to sneeze any second now.

"Hiro honey, why do you insist on laying down on that carpet?" Aunt Cass asked. Hiro smiled from his spot on the ground and decided to get a kick out of his Aunt who always melted at sweet and mushy things.

"Because when Dashi gets home from work, I jump onto him and then he feels so much more soft and comfortable in comparison." He responded.

"Aw! That's so cute Hiro." She gushed, gawking at his form. Hiro tried his best not bust out laughing and stuck to stifling his giggles.

Just then, he heard the door open and immediately he shot up to see his brother.

"Tadashi! You're home! Finally. You're exactly two minutes and 45, 46, 47, well you get the point!" Hiro buzzed, jumping onto his older brother. Tadashi chuckled at his brother's childish action, but hugged him. Then Hiro sneezed, (fortunately for Tadashi away from his face).

"Gosh Hiro bless you. Also, you're starting to get really heavy. I think you're too old to be clinging on to me now." He said teasingly.

"Not true. Everyone says I need to get meat on these bones." Hiro said, holding his arm out for Tadashi to observe.

"Well that shouldn't be too much of a problem for this weekend." His older brother mentions. Hiro cocks his head to the side in confusion.

"What's happening this weekend?" he asks.

"I'm taking you on a trip. I worked it out at the department and talked to Aunt Cass. We're going to Blue Lake for the long weekend." His brother surprised. Hiro's eyes lit up in joy.  
>"Really?! You don't have to go to work for three whole days?! And we get to go to Blue Lake?!" He asked in wonder.<p>

"Yeah bud. Just the two of us. Aunt Cass refuses to come. Something about too many bugs." Tadashi said, sending a knowing glance to their aunt.

"Yes and I'm trusting you to take good care of Hiro so don't make me regret it young man. You two better be safe." Aunt Cass warned.

"We will be." Tadashi promised.  
>"So Da- I mean Tadashi, when are we leaving?" Hiro said, catching himself. Last time he called his brother Dashi, a few older kids heard him and made fun of him. Tadashi gave them the glare of death, but Hiro was still embarrassed.<p>

"Tomorrow, so we have to pack today." His brother replied, ruffling his hair. Hiro pulled away from him in annoyance, but quickly it up again.

"This is gonna be so much fun!" He mused, getting out of his brother's hold and running upstairs. Tadashi smiled after him. He felt someone's eyes on him and turned to see Aunt Cass gushing at him.

"Uh, Aunt Cass?" he asked uncertainly. His Aunt squealed in happiness.  
>"Oh my goodness you two are adorable!" she exclaimed, giving her eldest nephew a big hug. Tadashi was confused, but decided to let it be.<p>

The next day, Hiro woke up even before Tadashi which wasn't normal. He bounced on Tadashi's bed until the older one woke up groggily.  
>"Wow Hiro. Leave it to you that you'd wake up half an hour earlier than you were supposed to today." Tadashi said, rubbing his eyes.<p>

"Yeah yeah. Let's go already. This is gonna be the best trip ever. I just know it." Hiro declared, strapping on his backpack. Tadashi smiled at his brother's excitement. He reluctantly got out of bed, changed and put his backpack on as well.

They both hurriedly ate breakfast, Hiro especially, and they hugged Aunt Cass goodbye. "We'll be super extra safe Aunt Cass. I'll make sure Tadashi doesn't do anything stupid." Hiro said. Aunt Cass giggled at her nephew's antics.

"Thank you Hiro. I'll keep that in mind. Now both of you be careful, come back in one piece, and most importantly, have fun." She said with a final hug to each of them.  
>"Bye Aunt Cass." they said, heading out the door.<p>

"Bye kiddos. Oh! And remember to take a bunch of pictures as well!" She cried as they left. "We will!" they called back as Hiro shut the door.

"So are we gonna take the moped there? I mean Blue Lake is pretty far from here, isn't it?" Hiro asked in curiosity.

"Nah, we're gonna take the car." Tadashi said nonchalantly, scanning Hiro's face for his reaction.

Tadashi's POV

I saw Hiro freeze up and stop walking immediately. He seemed to hold in a big breath. I was worried that this would happen. I thought maybe that if I treated it like it wasn't a big deal, he wouldn't think much of it, but I guess I was wrong.

"Hey, you okay Hiro?" I ask carefully. He shakes his head, almost as if he was snapping out of a trance. Looking up at me with big eyes he nodded quickly.

"Y-yeah Tadashi. I'm fine." He says with a stutter. I put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Hey now. Don't worry about a thing. I checked the car last night to make sure it was all set for us. Nothing bad will happen, I promise." I say to him, hoping to calm his nerves. He nudges my shoulder away to my dismay.

"You don't need to baby me Tadashi. I'm not a scared little kid. I can handle sitting in a car." He says with a bit of attitude. I frown. Not because he's showing me attitude, but because he won't open up to me. I know exactly why he's scared, but I don't know how it feels.

Ever since the accident with mom and dad, he's refused to step foot in a car, which is the main reason I purchased a moped. It doesn't scare him as much. I just hate that he acts like he's so much older than he really is. It doesn't help that he's quit doing all the things he used to do when we were younger. I do my best to respect his boundaries, but he's my little brother. You can't blame me for worrying.

"Alright then, let's get in." I say, opening the back door and dumping my backpack in it. "Need a hand?" I ask as he takes his backpack off.

"I can do it myself." He says flatly, opening the other door and mimicking my actions.

"Well then let's go." I say, climbing in the driver's seat. I wait for Hiro, but a minute passes and he's not inside. I look out the window to see him staring at the car, frozen. I feel bad for him. I want to go out there. Want to tell him I'm here. That he doesn't have to be afraid. I want to give him a big hug, but I can't. I know that that'll only make things worse. He'll only yell at me for babying him and I don't want that. I give him his space and time.

I see him blink and bite his lip. He slowly opens the door and sits down gently. Silence.

"Uh, you gonna put your seatbelt on?" I ask softly. He meets my gaze and nods in remembrance, strapping his belt on. "Thanks." He says lightly in response.

I start the car and smile when he doesn't freak out. That's a majorly good sign. I ease up on the steering wheel and back the car out of the driveway. Hiro seems to be fine, minus the fact that his eyes are as wide as an owl's. At least he isn't having a panic attack.

"You're okay right?" I ask once more just to make sure.  
>"I'm fine." He says, closing his eyes.<p>

"Okay." I say, driving off. A few minutes in, Hiro starts to visibly calm down. I notice him unstiffen his shoulders and relax his eyebrows from the corner of my eye. He leans his head on the window and just kind of stares at me.

"Um, th-thanks Tadashi. For…you know." He says with a light smile. I grin at him widely. "Anytime." I say. "You're the best." He whispers. "I know." I respond. He smacks my arm and I laugh. Finally, the fun can begin. Luckily Hiro goes to sleep because he doesn't want to feel the motion of driving.

When we finally get to Blue Lake, I park at our log cabin I rented.

"Wow." Hiro breathes, looking at the lake. "That's sick." He mused.

"Right. I got the cabin closest to the lake too." I bragged out, knowing Hiro would be excited. I wonder if he remembers that it's the one that mom, dad, he, and I used to rent out in summers before they died.

"No way!" He said. I nodded smugly.

"Alright, well that drive took pretty much all day, so how about you go get some firewood and I'll set stuff up for s'mores?" I ask. "You got it." He says, walking away. I grab his hoodie before he can leave though.

"Wait up little guy." I start. He glares at me when I call him that so I put my hands up in surrender. "Alright big guy." I correct as he rolls his eyes at me.

"What is it Tadashi?" he asks. "Ground rules. 1. Don't go too far. 2. Don't be out too long. Fifteen minutes until I freak out over you and look for you. 3. Don't talk to anyone you don't know. 4. Be careful. Scream for me if you're in trouble immediately. Got it?" I ask him.

"Got it bro." He says, flashing me a prefect toothed smile.  
>"Alright. I'm trusting you. Remember the rules." I say, watching him run off in the woodsy area.<p>

Hiro's POV

I was walking around with my hands in my pockets when I finally found the firewood. I grabbed a good amount and headed back, but decided that I would look around for a bit longer. After all, it had only been ten minutes. I still had a whole other five before Tadashi settled on having a panic attack.

This place was beyond wicked. It had a sort of cool/creepy vibe to it. I remember when Tadashi, mom, dad, and I all used to come to Blue Lake before they died. We'd all stay here during summer break. Same cabin and everything. We were a whole family then.

It was easier back then too. I could be a kid and no one would say anything. I could call Tadashi 'Dashi' and not worry what people did or said. I could show fear and be babied all I wanted without worrying what other people thought. I sighed and sat down on a log.

Setting the firewood down, I stared up at the sky. I loved Tadashi, I really did. And it's because of the fact that I love him that I can't show him that I'm afraid of everything from cars to thunder. I can't be selfish like that. That's not something he'd do.

Oh shoot! I lost track of time. Hopefully Tadashi didn't turn into a worry wart and is patiently waiting back at the cabin…..

Wow who am I kidding? He's probably having a spazz attack.

I start back with the firewood, but I'm a complete idiot because I didn't think about how dark it was getting. I couldn't tell where anything was. I was lost.

I wanted to scream. Scream for Tadashi like he told me to, but I couldn't. My pride wasn't letting me. Wasn't letting me yell, cry, or show fear. I simply continued to run, hoping I'd find the cabin by chance.

Tadashi's POV

It had been twenty minutes since I saw Hiro leave. I decided not to freak out after fifteen minutes and gave him a five minutes grace period, but I was starting to get worried. I decided it wouldn't hurt to go into the woods and look for him. I mean, fining an angry and annoyed Hiro was better than finding a hurt one. Or worse, not finding one at all.

I was in pretty deep when I found my baby brother. He was on the floor and I could've sworn that I heard a sob. He was just lying there, curled into a ball.

"Hiro?" I ask hesitantly. I saw him uncurl from his position immediately. He looked up at me with relieved eyes, but he didn't speak a word. I rushed down to him and pulled him in an embrace. He yanked away as soon as I did though. I gave him a hurt look. He didn't meet my gaze though.

"I'm fine Tadashi. You don't need to hug me every single time you see me you know." He tells me. Ironic that this is the same little guy that tackled me in a hug when I came back from the department yesterday.

"That's funny because I recall you hugging me every single day I get back from work." I tell him, trying my best not to sound hurt. He looked at me this time, eyebrows hunched. He looked mildly angry, but mostly annoyed.

"Yeah well when _I _hug you, I don't give you that look." He says to me sourly.

"What look Hiro?" I ask.

"The look that you'd give a wounded puppy. Like I'm some little baby that's afraid and can't take care of itself. _That_ look." He spits at me. '

I rub my forehead, holding in what I wanted to tell him. Why does he have to keep his emotions bottled up all the time?

"Okay I'm sorry Hiro. I won't give you that look again." I say. He silently gets off of the ground and waits for me to lead us back. Well that proved my suspicion that he was lost. I doubt he was going to admit it though.

"Want some help?" I ask as he's struggling to carry all of the firewood.

"I can do it myself." Is his plain reply. I let it be and we head back to the cabin. When we get inside, Hiro gets into one of the beds and covers himself up.  
>"Hey, don't you wanna make s'mores?" I ask.<br>"Not hungry." He mumbles. I feel my face fall. I place the marshmallows back in a cabinet and head to Hiro's bed, preparing a talk.

"Hey Hiro?" I start. I can practically feel his irritation vibrate through me, but he does his best not to show it. He heavily sighs though. "Tadashi not right now. Just, please?" he says. "Alright." I whisper, heading to my own bed.

"Uh hey. Tomorrow we can go swimming." I say to lighten the mood. I don't get a response. Well this sucks. This was supposed to be a fun trip. He's already upset. I wish I could do something, but I don't want to bother him.

The next day, Hiro and I change into our swimming clothes. No words are spoken about last night, but it's still bothering me. I guess I should be happy that he's trying to have fun.

We both jump into Blue Lake, but I can tell that Hiro isn't as into it as he usually is. He doesn't shout in joy or laugh at all. He's just stoic. When we get out of the water, I hand Hiro his towel and he silently dries himself. The quietness is bothering me, so I naturally try to break it.

"If you want, we can make those s'mores now." I suggest.

"Huh? Oh, that's okay, I'm not hungry." He says.

"Well what do you wanna do? We'll do whatever you want." I offer.

"I don't know. Whatever you want to do." He says with a shrug.

"I kind of want to talk about whatever it is that's bothering you, though I have a good hunch." I say as nonchalantly as I can. He gives me a look.

"Tadashi there is nothing bothering me." he says, ending the conversation, but I wasn't having any of that BS.

"Hiro c'mon. I know that you're afraid. I think you're afraid of admitting you're afraid and that just adds to your fear." I say gently.

"I'm not afraid Tadashi." He says plainly. I give him a look that says 'I do NOT believe you.' He shakes his head.

"Okay here you go. I'm not afraid. I promise. Wait, how's this? I, Hiro Hamada, am not afraid of admitting I'm afraid. I'm not afraid of anything or may a wolf eat me alive." He says with an eye roll for good measure.

I know he's lying, but there's no way I'm going to get the truth out of him like this so I just let it go.

"Alright Hiro. Fine. I can respect that." I tell him with a nod. He doesn't look convinced.

"You sure about that?" He asks with a raised eyebrow?  
>"Yeah sure. On one condition. We do something and you genuinely have a good time. I mean, you were so excited to come here in the first place." I say.<p>

"Yeah okay. Let's go in the woods. I want to see if I can find some squirrels. They look so funny when they stuff acorns in their mouths. Their cheeks puff up." He says thoughtfully.  
>"You got it bud. Let's go." I say with a laugh. I loved it when Hiro said childish things like that.<p>

And so we both set off into the woodsy area.

Normal POV

Hiro and Tadashi were out in the woods for a while now and they were getting a little tired.

"Da- Tadashi, can we go back now? I got enough pictures of squirrels and I'm getting kind of hungry." Hiro said.

"Sure. Let's go." Tadashi agreed.

"And Tadashi? Can we maybe make some s'mores?" He asked.

"Of course. I'm just glad you're finally having a good time." Tadashi answered.

"Me too." Hiro said with a smile.

Just then, a gray wolf approached them. Hiro was in shock, but still managed to snap a load of pictures of it. Tadashi looked genuinely afraid, but not for himself. His gaze went to Hiro and how he needed to get his baby brother out of here.

The wolf growled, causing Hiro to shudder, but he refused to admit he was scared to Tadashi. Utterly refused.

The wolf was odd looking. It had one sapphire blue eye and one midnight back one. It had teeth sharper than a shark and it was vicious looking.

Hiro felt his heartrate increase, but neither he, Tadashi, nor the wolf made a move.

"Hiro listen to me." Tadashi whispered. Hiro instantly shifted his gaze from the beast to his older brother. "I'm going to throw a rock at a tree opposite of us. It'll think someone's there and chase after it. That is our cue to run. Run and don't look back. Run to the log cabin and stay there. Run and don't worry about me. You need to run and run as fast as you can, do you understand?" Tadashi asked.

Hiro's breathing at this rate was unhealthy but he managed to nod to his brother. Tadashi took aim and flung the rock at the tree a ways away from them. But instead of the wolf running toward it, he merely growled, showing more teeth. Hiro was practically struggling to breathe now, too deep in fear.

The wolf howled and began getting closer to the Hamada brothers. Tadashi clenched Hiro's hand tightly and began running as fast as his long legs could carry him, dragging Hiro along.

Both brothers heard the wolf coming behind them. Tadashi was panicking and he lifted Hiro up to carry him and continued to run. Hiro resisted the urge to snuggle into Tadashi, seeking comfort. Instead, he poked his head behind his brother's broad back to sneak a peek at the animal chasing them.

Then, Tadashi tripped over a stick that was laying on the ground. Making sure Hiro landed on top of him, Tadashi gently got up. Hiro got up as well, grabbing the stick in the process. It was long and thick; a perfect defense for now. The wolf was coming closer. They could see it now, charging towards them.

"Hiro you need to get out of here. You hear me? Run! I'll distract it." Tadashi said in determination. Hiro furiously shook his head.

"No way Tadashi. I'm NOT leaving you here. I can't. I-I won't." Hiro declared.  
>"Hiro please!" Tadashi begged.<p>

The younger boy grasped Tadashi's hand and guided them through the woods. Tadashi was amazed, but didn't have time to marvel on how Hiro was taking charge. He had to figure out how to get back to the cabin. They were definitely lost by now.

"I can't see the wolf Tadashi. I'm going to climb a tree for a better look." Hiro said, hoisting himself up a tree.  
>"Be careful." Tadashi warned.<br>Hiro had climbed pretty high up and looked for the wolf. "I can't see anything Tadashi." He reported. Just then, a snake came out of nowhere, startling Hiro into falling out of the tree. He went down hard and groaned in pain. Tadashi rushed to his side in an instant.

"Hiro, are you okay?! Where does it hurt?" Tadashi asked with concern. Hiro shoved him off.

"Tadashi I'm okay. Idon't think my skin is bleeding. My mouth hurts a bit though. Are my gums bleeding?" he asked wearily, opening his mouth. Tadashi immediately gasped.  
>"What is it?! Is it bad?" Hiro asked. Tadashi looked away.<p>

"Uh, N-nope. It's perfectly fine." He said unconvincingly.

Hiro groaned. "Ugh, how bad is it?" Hiro asked.

"You've kind of got a gap in between your teeth bonehead." Tadashi replied uneasily. Hiro's jaw dropped.  
>"Just great. Well we can't worry about that right now, c'mon let's keep running." Hiro said, taking Tadashi's hand in his own once more.<p>

Both brothers were getting tired and soon ran out land to run on. They had hit a dead end. A cliff was below them. Water was under it, but neither brother knew how deep it went. It wasn't safe to jump into it. They stopped and panted for a while. The wolf had caught up.

"Hiro don't be scared." Tadashi said to his panting, wide-eyed brother.

"Tadashi for the last time, I am NOT scared, okay?!" Hiro yelled. The wolf advanced on them at this statement. Hiro gasped and stepped back. The poor boy forgot about the cliff behind them and lost his footing. He screamed and fell.

"HIRO!" Tadashi screamed, looking below the cliff. He sighed in sheer relief when he saw that Hiro used his stick and stuck it in the dirt of the cliff to hang on. Hiro's eyes were wide and panic filled.

"O-Okay Tadashi you were right you were SO right! I was afraid. I'm always afraid. I'm scared of cars. I'm scared of thunder. I was scared when you found me in the woods; thinking that you wouldn't come. I thought I was lost forever. I was scared when we saw that wolf. I was scared when it was chasing us. I was scared when you told me not to be afraid even though I told you I wasn't. And Dashi I'm terrified. I'm so scared that the wolf is gonna eat me because I lied to you about not being afraid and I said a wolf would eat me if I was lying and now it's here and it's happening. I was scared when I fell out of the tree and it hurt a lot. My mouth still hurts actually. I'm scared because I have a gap in my teeth, and Dashi I'm scared of letting go. Dashi…Dashi help me!" Hiro rambled in a whimper, tears streaming down his face and meeting the lake.

Tadashi was taken aback. He looked at the wolf who was coming closer to him. Using his instincts and karate techniques, he kicked the wolf off the cliff which fell with a low growl.

"Hiro. Don't worry about the wolf. It's gone. I promised you I wouldn't let anything happen to you and I planned to keep that promise" He said to his little brother, reaching for his hand. Hiro grabbed on for dear life as his brother pulled him up gently.

"You okay?" Tadashi asked. Hiro was about to nod, but instead shook his head vigorously and crashed into Tadashi like his life depended on it. "No Dashi, I am NOT fine. I'm traumatized you idiot!" He cried, sobbing into his older brother.

"Shh, you're gonna be fine. I promise." Tadashi comforted. Hiro sniffled and looked up at Tadashi with warm eyes.

"D-Dashi, I am so sorry." He whispered almost inaudibly.

"Shh," His brother replied, picking him up and carrying him back to the log cabin.

While he carried his baby brother, Tadashi hummed lightly to soothe him. Hiro lightly yawned and allowed his brother to baby him this once.

"Hey Dashi?" Hiro asked.

"What's on your mind?" Tadashi asked.

"Is Blue Lake just filled with the tears of people? Cause I remember when I was crying back there, my tears fell into the lake. Maybe oceans, lakes, and rivers are just the tears of people." Hiro mused groggily.

"Sure Hiro. Whatever you say." Tadashi said with a chuckle. His brother truly knew how to lighten the mood easily.

"Hiro, it's perfectly okay to be afraid sometimes. Don't bottle up your emotions." Tadashi begged once they got back to the cabin.

"I had a good reason to." Hiro defended as Tadashi bandaged his left arm. It had gotten red and sore from being pulled and pushed. (Hiro had used his left arm to jab the stick in the dirt)

"And what could that possibly be?" Tadashi asked, finishing up his handiwork.

"Dashi, you're always bottling up your emotions. You never let me help you deal with this kind of stuff. I didn't want to burden you just as you didn't want to burden me." Hiro admitted, testing his bandaged arm out.

"Don't move your arm like that for a while. And Hiro I'm the older one. It's my job to be strong for you." He defended.

"Wanna make a deal?" Hiro asked.

"What kind of deal?" Tadashi inquired.

"I'll admit when I'm scared if you admit when you're hurting." Hiro proposed.

"Deal." Tadashi agreed.

Hiro held his pinky out and they swore on it.

"Hey Dashi?" Hiro asked.

"What's up?"

"Can we make s'mores now?"

"Ha, sure thing bonehead." He said, pulling out the marshmallows out while Hiro started up the firewood.

Hiro shot his brother a big toothy smile to which Tadashi laughed at. Confused, Hiro sent him a questioning glance.

"It's just that your tooth gap looks pretty cute. You'll definitely be getting whatever you want from Aunt Cass with a puppy dog face." Tadashi snorted.

"Oh shut up." Hiro groaned. "My perect teeth! They've been besmirched!" Hiro said dramatically.

"Oh shut up you big baby." Tadashi said, handing him a marshmallow as Hiro popped it in his mouth.

"Hey check it out Tadashi. Perfect once more." Hiro said goofily as he had stuffed the marshmallow where the gap was.

Tadashi burst out laughing. "Do me a favor Hiro. Never grow up." Tadashi said, handing him more marshmallows.

****Side note. I edited it a bit! I'm so stupid. I told myself that I was gonna put something in here that showed how Hiro got his tooth gap which is why earlier in the story it said "Hiro flashed Tadashi his perfect toothed smile." I don't know if anyone noticed that becuase no one said anything, but that was why. ANyways...yeah :)

Hope that was okay for whoever requested it.

Once again guys, I literally cannot thank y'all enough for all the positive feedback I've gotten. I haven't gotten a single negative comment and I feel so blessed to have you all read these. LOVE YOU!


	27. Chapter 27

Brothers

27

Ages

Hiro: 10

Tadashi: 15

So this is a request from anomonist. They wanted one of Hiro getting bullied. I kind of wanted to write on this topic, but didn't at the same time for the fact that I've seen so many of them and I wanted to be more original. So I did the best I could on my take of what Hiro getting bullied would look like to me. Enjoy

Hiro's POV

"Guys c'mon, don't do this. Not today. It's Friday." I pointed out, hoping to lighten the mood. I doubted it did much though. The four guys in front of me didn't look like they wanted to show any mercy today.

"I don't think so Hamada. What you did was unforgivable." The one closest to me snarled. I gulped.

"It wasn't my fault you didn't know the answer and I did." I say with sarcasm, but regretted it as the kid pinned me against the lockers. I think his name was Jackson or something, but I wasn't sure.

"You wanna get smart with me pintsize?" He asked rhetorically.

"Please just let me go. I didn't do anything to you." I reason. He slams me against the lockers and I groan in pain.

"Just you wait Jackson. In a five and a half minutes, the bell will ring. Then, I'll have countless witnesses." I spit at him in distaste.

"Oh you wanna get cocky do you? Fine, let's see just how much we can accomplish in five and a half minutes." He challenges, glancing at his friends. They all just nonchalantly nod.

"Wait! I'll do your homework for a week if you let me go right now!" I bargain. I can see Jackson thinking over my deal.

"For every class?" he asks with a smirk.  
>"Yes." I reply, desperate for him to let me go.<p>

"Wait. If you're that desperate to get away, I say we ask for more. What do you think guys?" He asks. They all bob their heads up and down dumbly. I mentally groan. What will it take for them to leave me alone? I'm just a little kid. I don't deserve this. But no, I had to be born a nerd.

"No Hamada. You'll do all of our homework for a month and you're gonna do two major projects for us. Also, you're gonna give us your lunch money for two weeks." He demands.

I weigh my options. Physical pain? Emotional pain? Having to starve? One on hand, physical only hurts for a while and then goes away. On the other, it leaves marks and bruises that will get Tadashi and Aunt Cass questioning. It's harder to hide. But, I don't want to do their homework for a month, let alone do projects for them at the same time.

"Forget it Jackson. Fail your lazy self for all I care." I say. That does it. He slams me harder against the lockers and I fall to my knees, eyes shut tight. I refuse to let out a noise of pain. I refuse to give them the satisfaction.

"What was that nerd?" He asks tauntingly.  
>"I hate you." I spit out.<p>

He laughs heartlessly. "Oh and what are you gonna do about it? You little shrimp." He taunts, kicking my side before walking away. "C'mon guys, little brat's had enough. For now at least." He says as he leaves.

The bell rings as they get out of sight. I sigh and stand up painfully. I rub my side and get my backpack on and grab the book I checked out from the library. Tadashi approaches me a minute later to walk home together.

"'Sup baby bro. how was school?" He asked with a smile. I give him a smile back, though it's a bit forced.  
>"Just fine. You?" I ask.<p>

"It was awesome! I got a 98% on my test and everyone was like 'Whoa! How did you get an 'A'?!" he exclaims happily. I give him a real smile this time. Tadashi loved school a lot. So much that he talked about it every single day. Even on weekends. To see him get excited made me happy.

"So how about you? It's Monday. You get any test scores back?" he asks.

"Yeah. Three." I say.

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"Geez Hiro, what'd you get on them?"

"Oh. Hundreds on all of them."

"That's great! Want to celebrate?!" he asks in joy.

I scan his face. He seems so happy. Who am I to destroy that?

"Yeah sure. If you want." I respond.

"It's settled. The three of us will go out for ice cream." Tadashi declares.

"Cool. An excuse to get my hands on some gummy bears." I reply with a grin.

"Hey you okay bro? You've been sort of limping while we've been walking." Tadashi notes. I get a bit worried, but decide I can play this off easily.

"Yeah, I'm just sore from P.E." I lie.  
>"Ugh, I know what you mean. The coach is bonkers. Making you run a mile as a warm up is insanity." Tadashi says understandingly. "Hey, you want me to carry you?" he asks. I give him a look.<p>

"Hey, I won't judge." He says innocently.

"Tadashi, I'm not four years old." I say with a chuckle.

"Still act and scream like one." Tadashi retorts with a snicker.

"Scream?" I question.  
>"Yeah scream. Like this." He says, tickling me lightly on my rib. I squeal involuntarily and glare at him for it. He just pokes his tongue out at me. "That wasn't fair, you caught me off guard." I whine. He shrugs and reaches to tickle me again, this time on both ribs.<p>

"I wince a bit when he tickles my left rib, but hold in the pain. It's easy to while I'm laughing so I thank my lucky stars that he's tickling me.

"D-Dashi! Stop! Okay I scream like a four year old now s-s-stop!" I stutter between giggles and squeals.

"Victory once more." He says goofily retracting his large hands.

"Whatever." I reply with a snort. Then, he grabs my book.

"Secrets to building a good robot? Wow Hiro, you're really into robotics, huh?" he questions, holding the book out of my reach. I jump up and down like a monkey trying to get it back.  
>"Oh! C'mon Tadashi, give it back." I beg, on my tippy toes.<p>

"Make me." he teases.

"I hate you." I mumble, head down.

"What are you gonna do about it? You little shrimp?" Tadashi snorts playfully. I gasp at his words and how familiar they sounded. The déjà vu hits me and I fall to the ground. Tadashi immediately kneels down.

"Wow Hiro. You okay? What happened?" He asks.

"S-stay away." I say, backing up from him. I hold my head in my hands and try to calm myself, but the memories of those bullies comes back and I hold my rib.

'Tadashi was only messing with you. He wouldn't hurt you. Dashi isn't Jackson.' I tell myself over and over until I can breathe again.

When I open my eyes, Tadashi's sitting right in front of me with concern lacing his eyes.

"Sorry Tadashi. I just spaced out." I say, getting up.

"You call having a panic attack spacing out?! Hiro, what's wrong?" he asks me.

"Nothing Tadashi. I just spaced out. I didn't have a panic attack. I'm fine. Honest." I lie. Tadashi just sighs.

"Alright. But you'd tell me if something was really wrong, right?" he asks.

"Of course." I say.

"Yeah okay. Let's go." He says, heading to the door of the Lucky Cat Café.

"Hiro, you sure you're okay? You seem down." Tadashi asked me three days later.

Considering I had a black eye I had to hide from Monday, I wasn't exactly jumping for joy. I couldn't just tell Tadashi that though, so I flash him a smile.

"I'm fine Tadashi. Now c'mon or we're gonna be late." I say.

"Just give it back and leave me alone Jackson!" I yell as he corners me in the boy's locker room after snatching my book.

"Not a chance shrimp." He replies, shaking the book tauntingly. I want to smack that smirk off of his face for treating me like this. It's _his_ fault I spazzed out at Tadashi the other day. He's the cause of my misery. I take all my anger and transfer it to my leg and kick Jackson's stomach as hard as I can. I wait for his reaction but he merely laughs.

"Ha! You think you and your chicken legs can hurt me? How pathetic. You're brother, Tadashi, is probably ashamed as hell to have a brother like you." He sneered, whacking my head brutally on my head for good measure.

"Shut up! Don't you DARE talk about my brother that way! Make fun of me all you want but when you talk ill of Tadashi, you cross the line you idiot!" I scream at him, rubbing my head. He just whacks my head again and laughs as if this is his favorite game.

"Stop!" I demand. He just keeps whacking me harder and harder and I groan in pain. I try not to, but I can't help myself. I'm sure I'll have bumps on my head after this, but I refuse to cry in front of him.

"Are you gonna try and kick me again?" He taunts.

"Please just leave me alone." I plead, cursing myself for how desperate I sound.

"Okay shrimp. I'll leave you alone if you do what I said last time." He bargains.

"Not in this lifetime." I spit at him. That's definitely not the response he wanted because he begins kick me on my sides and stomach and I'm sure he's leaving bruises. I still don't give in to him.

"You know what shrimp? If I was your brother, I'd beat you up every single day." He says with dark chuckles.  
>"Shut up!" I cry out between his kicks. Suddenly, he stops kicking me. I'm confused and shoot him a puzzled look. He has a knowing smirk on his face. Like he's figured some juicy secret out. I ignore it and reach for my book again. To my surprise, he hands it to me willingly.<p>

"What the heck are you playing at?" I ask him with a raised eyebrow, frown still present.

"You know, I bet Tadashi's ashamed that he's related to such a loser." He says with a dark look. I clench my book against me and block his words out.

"Shut up you big fat liar. You don't know anything about Tadashi. He cares about me more than anyone. He is nowhere near ashamed of me." I fire back.

"Really? Is that why he hasn't confronted me? Because he cares so much about you?" He taunts. I clench my book even tighter.

"For your information, I didn't tell him about this because I didn't want him to worry!" I shout at him, getting angrier by the second. I try to escape, but he's stronger and stops me.

"Or…." He drawls. "Or you're scared that he won't care. You're being a coward. You're afraid that he won't be able to do anything about it." He says with a smirk.

"Stop it!" I shout at him, pushing him, though it's a failed effort. He just laughs at me.

"You're pathetic Hamada. Tadashi doesn't give two shits about your wellbeing. That's why he hasn't done anything. Anyone can see that you've put makeup on to hide that hideous black eye. If you think he can't see that, you're just lying to yourself. Tadashi knows. He just doesn't _care_." Jackson says coldly. I gasp and drop the book. I've clenched my fists so tightly that they've turned ghost white.

"SHUT UP YOU LIAR! Tadashi isn't like you. He has a heart that's bigger than anyone else's. He cares about me. He loves me!" I shout at him in anger.

"You tell yourself that shrimp. But you can't deny the truth from yourself forever. You're smart. Sooner or later you'll figure it out." He says in a sickeningly sweet tone, leaving me.

I drop to the floor and pick up my book.

"He's wrong. Tadashi cares about me no matter what. That's why he asks me how I'm doing every day. I'm just a good liar. Right?" I ask myself, hugging my book for comfort. I feel doubts coming, but I do my best to push them away. Tadashi cares about me. I know he does.

…Right?

"So you wanna play a game?" Tadashi asked when we got home.

I look up from my homework, biting my lip. I did want to take a break, but I just had to make sure of something first. I slide my paper across my finger, causing it to draw blood.

"Yeah sure, but can you get me a Band-Aid first? I kind of got a paper cut on my finger." I say, holding it up to show him. Tadashi immediately disappears to the bathroom to grab a bandage from the first aid kit.

"Here." He says, placing the Band-Aid on my finger gently. "You okay?" He asks when he's one.

"Yeah, thanks." I say, smiling.

"Why do you seem so happy?" He asks with a smile of his own.  
>"No reason. Hey Tadashi, if I was say…being bullied or whatever, what would you do?" I ask him, not making eye contact. Tadashi's eyes narrow before giving me a gentle gaze.<p>

"Hiro, is there something you want to tell me?" He asks.

"Wh-what?! Tadashi c'mon. I'm just being hypothetical of course. I'm not bullied. No one can bully a Hamada." I say, puffing out my chest in an attempt to look tougher. I hope he's buying this.

"Oh thank goodness. You really had me worried there bonehead. That's my baby brother. A fighter! Not a wimp." He says teasingly, ruffling my hair. In my sorrow, I let him mess it up.

'Was Jackson right? Would Tadashi think I'm a wimp if I told him the truth then?' I thought to myself.

"So how about that game now?" Tadashi asks, holding up a Wii remote.

"Uh, I'd love to Tadashi, but I should really finish my homework. Sorry. Maybe later." I say, getting back to my math

. I can see Tadashi's a tad upset from the corner of my eye, but he brushes it off and opens his own backpack to do something as well. I feel a throb in my stomach from where Jackson landed a good kick, but fight the pain. After what just happened, there's no way in hell I'm telling Tadashi what's going on.

Normal POV

"What, no book today nerd?" Jackson sneered along with one of his friends. Hiro flinched at Jackson's sudden presence.

"No." He replied uneasily. He had returned the book to the library yesterday, not that he was going to give Jackson the details.

"I see your brother hasn't come hunting me down yet. He must really not give a shit about you." Jackson taunted.

Hiro closed his eyes and remembered that Tadashi had immediately come to his aid when he got his paper cut. He breathed in and out, reminding himself that Tadashi _did_ care despite what the jerk in front of him claimed.

He felt a sharp pain shoot in his side and opened his eyes. Jackson had kicked him with a laugh. Hiro tried to run away, but Jackson's friend held him in place.

The young genius glared harshly at Jackson. Hatred and bitterness was shot at the bully, who wasn't fazed at all.

"What, am I not good enough to be your personal punching bag anymore?" He spit at Jackson who smirked in response.

"Nope, I just figured out how to rile you up better is all." He said smugly.

"Oh, you're so clever. Let me guess. The few brain cells that didn't die off in you at birth managed to find some other way to torture me?" Hiro bit back. To the younger Hamada's surprise, Jackson didn't kick him like he usually did when Hiro was being smart. Instead, Jackson leaned against the wall lazily and smiled.

"What are you playing at?" Hiro questioned, curiosity rising up in him.

"You know, for a super nerd, you're pretty stupid not to get it by now." Jackson said nonchalantly.

"What are you talking about?" Hiro asked, voice innocent and pure.

Jackson began laughing, causing his friend to laugh as well. Hiro's cheeked burned in anger and embarrassment. He wondered what the bullies were talking about.

"Your brother smart one. Whenever someone says anything about that loser, you get utterly defensive and scared out of your mind. Like when I mention the fact that he doesn't care about you. Then again, who _would_ care about you? I mean, isn't it true that your parents died in a car crash with you in it? Tadashi wasn't in it was he? That's obviously because your parents were trying to kill you. They failed, so they just killed themselves. Pity really. I knew they were really famous scientists. NO wonder they wanted to keep Tadashi alive though. He probably wasn't as much of a disappointment." Jackson said darkly.

"STOP IT! STOP! SHUT UP!" Hiro screeched, covering his ears. He sunk to his knees. Jackson's friend had let him go as he fell down. Fat, hot tears poured down his face. The one thing he promised himself he'd never do was happening. He was bawling his eyes out in front of his bullies.

The kicks, punches, and beatings he could handle, but Jackson's words had deeply hurt him. What he said strangely made sense to Hiro's dismay. His words bounced around in his head, though he tried to push them away. This was it. He simply HAD to tell Tadashi about this.

"What's wrong Hiro?" Does the truth hurt? Because it tends to do that to people." Jackson remarked coldly.

Hiro shook his head. He was begging Jackson to stop with the jabs.

"Wh-what? What did I ever d-do to you?" He whispered out softly and delicately. Jackson raised a brow. A look of guilt seemed to pass through his eyes before the normal taunting look was back.

"Same thing you did to your parents and brother. You were _born_." He tossed out like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Hiro gasped and covered his mouth. He blinked rapidly, hoping to stop the fresh abundance of tears about to pour out, but no such luck. The waterworks came flooding out of his chocolate brown eyes and they wouldn't stop.

"That's how I can get a kick into your pathetic heart without even touching you. Hope you go crying to your brother. He'll just add fuel to this fire." Jackson said with a sneer, walking off with his friend.

Hiro sobbed in the corner for what seemed like forever.

'Well he's right. There's no way I can tell Tadashi anymore. He obviously doesn't care. He would've noticed me limping or clutching my rib in pain. If he really cared, he would've asked more questions. And maybe this is why he hates talking about mom and dad. He knows that they died because of me.' Hiro thought. He uncurled out of his ball and sulked outside where he was to meet Tadashi.

As soon as Tadashi caught sight of Hiro, he looked immensely relieved.

"Oh thank goodness Hiro. I was beginning to worry." Tadashi said, reaching for his younger brother's hand.

'Yeah you would worry after half an hour. No biggie. It's not like I was being verbally assaulted.' Hiro thought sourly.

"Wow Hiro, what happened? Your eyes are blotchy and red. Did you eat something with peanuts in it?! You know I told you not to Hiro!" Tadashi immediately assumed.

Hiro mentally cursed himself for not washing his face prior to meeting up with his older brother.

"N- I mean yes. I did. Sorry Tadashi, I just couldn't help myself." Hiro lied. He figured that this was the perfect lie to tell since Tadashi already assumed it.

Tadashi pointed an accusing finger at Hiro and smiled in slight victory.

"Ha! I knew it. Hiro, did you really think you could get away with it? Lying to me? I'm the one who taught you how to lie. Rule number 3 is that if it seems too easy, it is." Tadashi said.

"I'm sorry Tadashi. I won't eat peanuts again." Hiro mumbled. Tadashi face-palmed himself.

"Dang it Hiro. I'm not talking about the darn peanuts. I meant lying about whatever it is you're not telling me. I know you're hiding something. Did you think I wouldn't figure it out?" Tadashi asked in slight anger.

Hiro gulped and wiped at his eyes. How did Tadashi figure out he was lying? He thought he did a pretty good job in keeping it a secret.

"Hiro, please tell me what's going on." Tadashi asked gently, pulling Hiro into him. Hiro pulled out in a heartbeat though, causing Tadashi to flash a look of hurt to him.

"Nothing Tadashi. You always assume that something's going on. I'm fine." Hiro assured, slight edge to his voice.

"Bull crap Hiro. I know that something's wrong." Tadashi retaliated.

"Tadashi it's okay." Hiro said completely honestly this time. The older Hamada was confused.

"I don't understand." Tadashi admitted.

"It's okay. I know you don't care. No one does, but it's alright. I've come to terms with it. I can handle it. I'm tough, remember." Hiro said to him. Tadashi was flabbergasted.

"Hiro, what the heck are you talking about?! Of course I care about you! Why do you think I didn't press you into telling me what it is you're hiding from me until now? It's because I didn't want you to feel pressured. I noticed you limping on your legs and rubbing your sides and stomach. I noticed you were in pain. I wanted to help you. You wouldn't let me. Hiro please tell me what's going on." Tadashi begged.

Hiro was taken aback. His concern, sorrow, and melancholy mood transformed into anger and hatred. Bitterness and darkness replaced his features, all directed at Jackson. He was so stupid to fall into that idiots trap. He purposely used his weakness against him. He was dumb for thinking that Tadashi didn't care. His mom and dad loved him and so did Tadashi. He clenched his fists and furrowed his brows deeply.

"Hiro deep breaths." Tadashi advised, pulling him into an embrace which Hiro allowed this time.

"Tell me what happened otuoto." Tadashi pleaded softly.

"J-Jackson happened." He sobbed. Only this time, his tears were of anger, not sadness.

"Jackson Banks. The douchebag in my history class?" Tadashi asked, more to himself.

"I th-think so." Hiro said.

"Dark brown hair? Ugly piercing on his left ear?" Tadashi asks to confirm. He felt Hiro nod his head up and down from his hold.

"Hiro, why didn't you say something?" Tadashi asked.

"I didn't want you to worry at first. Then, I was going to, but you seemed so proud that I was a fighter and not a wimp. I couldn't bring myself to tell you. But the truth is that I'm a coward. A coward and a wimp" Hiro explained.

"Oh Hiro. It takes a lot of bravery to admit something like this. You still _are_ a fighter. Telling me the truth takes a lot of courage. I'm glad you did. Now what did he do to you?" Tadashi asked.

Hiro didn't answer.

"I can't tell you." Hiro said softly.

"Excuse me a minute." Tadashi said quietly, walking into the building, leaving Hiro alone outside.

'Where is he going?' Hiro thought.

A few minutes later, Hiro heard girlish squealing, followed by Jackson running out with two black eyes, bruises on his arms, and a terrified expression on his face. He ran past the younger Hamada and was screaming in terror in the process.

Hiro blinked in disbelief. Rubbing his eyes, he watched as Jackson ran off, almost as if it were surreal.

Then he saw Tadashi walk out of the building calmly and toward him. Hiro backed away slowly and cautiously.

"T-Tadashi, you didn't do that to Jackson, did you?" He asked, voice cracking. Tadashi nodded, seeming satisfied and coming closer to his younger brother who backed away further.

"But Dashi, you're the one who told me that two wrongs don't make a right. How could you?!" Hiro questioned.

"He deserved it. I made him tell me everything he did or said to you and it pissed me off. I'm sorry if that scared you Hiro, but it had to be done. He made me so angry." Tadashi growled, clenching his fists. Hiro winced and backed up even more.

Tadashi noticed this and his face fell. Hiro had gotten scared of him only once before and he swore to himself he'd do everything in his power to make sure it didn't happen again. He had failed though. Hiro was afraid of him. He could sense it.

"D-does that mean i-if I made you a-angry enough, y-y-you'd h-hurt me t-too?" Hiro asked, wide eyed and trembling.

"No Hiro. Of course not. I'd never hurt you. I swear on it. Pinky swear." He said, holding out his pinky. Hiro however, rejected Tadashi's pinky and scooted away from his older brother.

"How can I trust you?" He asked in a voice that made Tadashi want to die. It was so vulnerable sounding. So innocent.

"Have I ever gotten mad at you before?" Tadashi asked. Hiro look at Tadashi directly for the first time since he exited it.

"Yes." He replied easily, cocking his head to the side.  
>"And have I ever hit you before?" Tadashi asked.<p>

"N-no." Hiro said after thinking for a second. He perked up and hugged his brother.

"I'm sorry Dashi! I know you'd never hurt me. I don't even know why I questioned it! You're the best." Hiro said.

Tadashi sighed in sheer relief.

"Don't worry Hiro. As long as I'm alive, I won't let anyone hurt you like that jerk. He won't be bothering you anymore. I promise you that." Tadashi said, hugging back.

"Thanks Dashi." Hiro said as they walked home.

"Anytime." Tadashi said with a smile.

Oh! I wanted to mention that I won't be updating as often anymore because school started up again. Sorry! But homework calls. LOVE y'all

-girl you wouldn't expect


	28. Chapter 28

Brothers

28

Ages

Hiro: 5

Tadashi: 10

So this is a request from a guest who asked to see Tadashi getting sick and Hiro getting worried about it. I don't think I'll make him have to go to the hospital though. I like to have a somewhat natural essence in my story and that's too forced in my opinion.

Oh and by the way, I won't be doing any alive Tadashi fics because I already started a fic of an alive Tadashi and I don't want to do that with these shorts. Sorry for those that requested those ones.

Normal POV

Tadashi Hamada woke up to a way too close Hiro observing him.

"Uh, Hiro, what have I told you about personal space?" Tadashi asked slowly.

Hiro smiled widely. "That Dashi needs LOTS of it." He recited proudly, looking at his older brother for approval.

Tadashi smiled at his brother's adorableness, but still questioned him.

"Okay yes. So why are you so close to me?" Tadashi asked.

"Because Dashi!" Hiro cried as if it were obvious. Tadashi raised a brow.

"Because why?" The older one asked in amusement.

"Because Dashi's forehead is hot! I touched it and It's burnin up! Burnin up, burnin up, for you baby!" Hiro sang with a laugh, but eyes widening. He looked concerned mixed with amusement.

"But I feel pretty cold." Tadashi mused.

"Yes. Your forehead is fiery hot. Your hands are ice cold. It's like the song. You're hot and you're cold!" Hiro said in an attempt to lighten the mood.

"That's right bonehead." Tadashi said with a chuckle. Hiro grinned at the praise.

Tadashi began to get up, but Hiro stopped him. The older one raised an eyebrow again.

"Dashi needs rest. No getting up unless I say so." Hiro commands authoritatively.  
>"Oh, are you my doctor?" Tadashi asks with a snort. Hiro's eyes light up at Tadashi's words.<p>

"Can I be? Please Dashi?! Pretty please with gummy bears on top? I'll be the bestest doctor ever! Just like you are for me when I'm sick! I promise!" Hiro said excitedly.

"I don't know Hiro. It's a big responsibility." Tadashi said, pretending to think it over.

"Pretty pretty pretty please Dashi?! I'll do anything you want. All you have to do is ask." Hiro pleaded shamelessly. Tadashi chuckled at his brother.

"Okay. I want some water." Tadashi said with a smirk.  
>"With ice?" Hiro asked kindly.<p>

"God no Hiro. I'm freezing here." Tadashi said. Hiro nodded and went to the kitchen to get the water.

Tadashi noticed that the fan was on. 'Who turns the fan on in this weather?' he thinks as Hiro comes back with a glass of water.

"Hiro, could you turn the fan off please?" Tadashi asks.

"Of course. I'm your doctor after all." Hiro said, waddling to the light switch and jumping up as high as he could to turn the fan off.

"Thanks bro." Tadashi said, raising the glass of water to his lips.

"No problem." Hiro replied with a smile.

Tadashi's face contorted into an expression of pain. He quickly spit the water out and began violently coughing.

"Dashi! Are you okay?!" Hiro asked in worry, snatching the cup away from his brother.

"I-I don't know." Tadashi said between coughs.

'What would Dashi have done for me?' Hiro thought.

'Wait, that's it!' Hiro figured out, rushing to Tadashi. The younger brother whacked Tadashi's back to get him to start breathing normally. It worked to Hiro's relief and Tadashi calmed down, panting lightly.

"You okay Dashi?" Hiro asked.

"Yeah. Thanks Doctor." Tadashi said with a soft smile.

"What happened? Was the water too cold?" Hiro asked.

"Yeah." Tadashi replied with a shiver. Hiro noted that his brother's teeth were chattering and he was shaking in response to his body's coldness.

"Maybe I should get Aunt Cass?" Hiro suggested.

"What happened? Doctor Hiro can't figure this out?" Tadashi asked playfully through his chattering teeth.

"No, I'm just worried for you." Hiro defended, going off to fetch Aunt Cass.

He returned with Aunt Cass only to see Tadashi knocked out cold.

"Will he be alright?" Hiro asked his Aunt.

"Let me take his temperature." She said, walking over to her oldest nephew.

"Tadashi sweetie? Wake up. I need to take your temperature." She said soothingly.

The older boy groaned and sat upright against his bed to make it easier when Aunt Cass shoved the thermometer in his dry mouth.

"Want me to hold your hand Dashi? So you're not scared?" Hiro asked seriously. Tadashi resisted the urge to laugh.

"Sure buddy." He said instead, as Hiro gripped his hand firmly.

"Oh no. looks like you won't be doing anything for the next few days mister. You've got a massive fever. I'm going to go make you some hot soup. Sit tight." Aunt Cass said, heading downstairs.

When she left, Hiro noticed Tadashi shivering.

"Dashi, you want some blankets?" Hiro asked.

"Yeah, that'd be great actually." Tadashi replied, trying to merge into his blankets for warmth. Hiro hurried out of the room while Tadashi hugged himself desperately. He had no idea why he was feeling unbelievably cold.

Tadashi heard a thud and a few bangs here and there and wondered what was happening.

"Hiro? You okay?" He asked through teeth chatters.  
>"Mmhm fine." Hiro said with a muffle.<p>

Tadashi saw Hiro waddle into the room, or should he say, he saw the comforter waddle in. Poor Hiro was so much tinier and lighter than the comforter, it seemed to eat him up.

His entire body was covered in the blue fluffy blanket and he couldn't really see where he was going. Tadashi chuckled at this.

"Hiro, you could've asked for help." He said in amusement.

"I'm the doctor. I can do it." Was his brother's stubborn, yet adorable reply.

"You're walking the wrong way." Tadashi said with a smile. He was watching Hiro try and find his way like it was his favorite show.

Eventually, the older brother decided to help Hiro as he was continually bumping into walls.

"C'mere you boneheaded klutz." Tadashi said, lifting the comforter over his brother's head.

Hiro smiled sheepishly at him, showing off his teeth gap. "Sorry." He said with a blush.

"It's okay. It's not your fault you're so short and small." Tadashi said teasingly. Hiro stuck his tongue out at Tadashi and pushed him back on the bed.

"You need bed rest." Hiro commanded.

"Geez Hiro. You sure are taking this doctor thing very seriously." Tadashi observed.

"Yup. Just like you do for me. Now do you need anything?" Hiro questioned.

"Nope. Why don't you check if Aunt Cass needs you?" Tadashi suggested, burying himself in the comforter.

"Okay." Hiro agreed, heading downstairs.

About half an hour passes when Tadashi felt as if he was getting even sicker. The soup that Aunt Cass had made him didn't help as much as everyone had hoped.

Hiro tugged at Aunt Cass's leg.

"Dashi is gonna be fine, right?" he asked in worry, yet hope.

"Of course sweetie. He's tough, he'll fight it." Aunt Cass assured.

Hiro looked to Tadashi for confirmation, worry etched into his doe brown eyes.

"Hey now doc, I'll be fine. I've got you to take care of me." Tadashi said with a forced smile, trying his best not to cough in his words.

It worked however, as Hiro looked relieved. "You're right Dashi. Don't sweat it." Hiro said.

He then hopped into Tadashi's bed and felt his forehead.

"WOW Tadashi! You're burning up like CRAZY!" Hiro cried out in alarm, retrieving his arm. He waved it around to cool it off. Hiro's arm brushed across Tadashi's in the process and Hiro widened his eyes. He then proceeded to touch Tadashi's nose, hands, and feet.

"Aunt Cass, Tadashi is fiery hot on his forehead, but ice cold everywhere else." Hiro reported. "Diagnosis: he's weird." Hiro concluded.

Tadashi bonked Hiro on the head at his analysis.

"I'm not weird you goober." He said. Hiro giggled and hopped off of his brother's bed.

"He's not wrong. I think we should call a real doctor." Aunt Cass suggested as she felt Tadashi's hands and forehead.

"Alright." Tadashi agreed easily. Aunt Cass mentally thanked god that it wasn't Hiro who was sick. He'd throw a tantrum about the doctor and how he was evil.

"Alright, I'm gonna go call Dr. Pepper." She said, leaving the room.

Hiro laughed like a maniac when she was gone.

"What's got you riled up?" Tadashi asked, voice sounding hoarser already.

"D-Dr. P-p-pepper!" He burst out through his giggles.

"You're such a boneheaded goober." Tadashi said with a scoff.

Hiro poked his bottom lip out.

"Am NOT Dashi. You know it's funny. C'mon. Dr. Pepper? He probably became a doctor just to make that joke." Hiro defended with a light stamp of the foot. Though his words were funny, he seemed to be a bit serious. Tadashi chuckled at his antics.

"You're so cute Hiro." Tadashi mused.

"Am NOT. Take it back Dashi!" Hiro said in anger. His furrowed brows and pouty lip made Tadashi coo at the adorableness.

"Stop it Dashi! I am not cute! I'm vicious!" Hiro said, baring his teeth to the best of his ability, but it backfired as his tooth gap showed, making him three times as adorable. Tadashi laughed lightly and adjusted his hat better on his head.

"Alright you're not cute." Tadashi said. Hiro perked up at his brother's words. Tadashi then used every ounce of energy he had left in his body to lift up Hiro and place him in front of him.

"Ruffling his brother's hair, Tadashi quickly said "You're unbelievably adorable!" in a baby voice.

"Ugh Dashi NO!" Hiro cried out, pulling away.

Tadashi doubled over in raspy cough filled laughter. Hiro groaned, but was secretly happy that he helped Tadashi smile. Then, Hiro smirked.  
>"What?" Tadashi asked, curious. Hiro swiped Tadashi's hat and placed it on his own head. "Gah! Hiro, give it back." Tadashi demanded.<p>

"No way. You can't move too much. You're sick." Hiro taunted.  
>Tadashi gave up. Hiro <em>did<em> look funny with the hat. But, the younger brother gave the hat back. Tadashi raised an eyebrow. Hiro shrugged.

"It's actually not that fun when you can't fight back for it." He explained.

Then, Aunt Cass came in with Dr. Pepper.

"Alright son, let's see what we've got here." He said, observing Hiro.

"I'm not the sicko! It's my brother Dashi. He's hot and he's cold. He's yes then he's no!" Hiro sang with a giggle. The old doctor cracked a light chuckle as well.

"Well let's check out your brother then, shall we?" He asked Hiro. The young boy nodded.

After about five minutes of observing Tadashi, Dr. Pepper pulled back with a sigh.

"What's wrong mister? My brother's going to be fine, right? He's really tough. He can fight anything." Hiro said, embarrassing Tadashi. The older brother hid behind his hat and hoped the doctor would ignore his brother.

The doctor luckily just smiled softly at Hiro.

"He'll be okay little one." The doctor said. Then he faced Aunt Cass.

"He has semi-severe pneumonia. It's highly contagious so I'd keep the little tyke away from him. Make sure he gets lots of rest, water, and warmth. That should make him feel better. He'll be alright." The doctor diagnosed.

"I'm not little. I was taking care of Dashi while you weren't here. I made him feel better." Hiro boasted, puffing out his chest heroically.

The doctor patted Hiro's head much to the little boy's dismay.

"Good job. But it's not safe for you to be near Tadashi right now. He could make _you_ sick too. We don't want that, do we?" The doctor asked.

"I don't mind. Wherever Tadashi goes, I go. He needs me. He told me so." Hiro defended.

"Hiro, just listen to Dr. Pepper." Tadashi said hoarsely.

"Okay Dashi." Hiro said, somewhat hurt.

"Well then, I'll be on my way. Get well soon Tadashi." Dr. Pepper said as he walked out.

"Well you heard the man. Bundle up Tadashi. I'll get you some water. Try and relax." Aunt Cass said, taking Hiro's hand.

"I can get him the water Aunt Cass." Hiro insisted as they walked down the stairs.  
>"Oh no honey. I don't need two sick boys on my hands. You're staying downstairs until your older brother is safe to be around." Aunt Cass said firmly, filling up a cup with water.<p>

"Tadashi won't hurt me. He's the safest person to be around." Hiro defended. He didn't like what Aunt Cass and Dr. Pepper said about his brother. As if _he_ himself were the disease.

"I don't mean that Hiro. I mean Tadashi is contagious. He could get you sick too." Aunt Cass explained. Hiro didn't grasp that though.

"No he won't. Tadashi never lets me get sick. Why would he start now?" Hiro asked. His five year old little mind was confused. Aunt Cass giggled at him. "Oh Hiro. You'll understand when you're older. Just stay here. Go have a donut if you want." She offered, heading upstairs.

Hiro looked down at the bottom floor of their house. The idea of being able to eat Aunt Cass's inventory was tempting, but he was troubled by the fact that Aunt Cass and Dr. Pepper thought Tadashi wasn't safe. He would prove them wrong. His brother was the safest person in the world. He'd show them.

When Aunt Cass went back to the bottom floor of the café to work, Hiro snuck back upstairs to the third floor.

He knocked on the door. Tadashi didn't respond. Hiro slowly opened it as it made a faint "creeeek." The young one stepped inside and closed the door.

"Dashi?" he whispered.

No response.

Hiro walked over to Tadashi's bed. He could hear unhealthy breathing patterns coming from Tadashi. The older one was shivering in his sleep. Hiro, deciding to be the good little brother he was, took the blankets from his own bed and threw them onto Tadashi's sleeping form. The shivering settled a bit to his relief.

Then Hiro himself climbed up onto Tadashi's bed and nestled himself next to his older brother.

"You're not unsafe to be around Dashi. You won't make me sick." Hiro whispered to Tadashi as he let out disgruntled snores. Hiro closed his eyes and buried his head into Tadashi's chest.

When Tadashi woke up, he immediately noticed Hiro lying next to him, thumb in mouth. Ignoring how adorable it looked, he shook Hiro awake in concern. Hiro rubbed his eyes sleepily and looked up at Tadashi with groggy, confused brown pupils.

"What's wrong Dashi? Do you need water?" He asked tiredly.

"No you bonehead! Who let you in here?" The older boy asked.

"I did. Why?" He asked.

"Hiro you shouldn't be here! Leave." Tadashi commanded.

"But why?" Hiro asked, tears coming into his still half asleep eyes.

Tadashi quickly shushed Hiro and held his shoulder warmly.

"Hiro you can't be here while I'm sick. The closer you get to me, the more prone you are to getting sick. I'm contagious, meaning my sickness can automatically transfer to you. I can't help it." Tadashi explained.

Hiro's mouth made a large 'oh' shape.

"That's what they meant. I'm sorry Dashi, I didn't know. You're much better at explaining things." Hiro said sheepishly, getting out of his brother's bed.

"It's okay you goober. Now go before you get sick.  
>"Yeah okay." Hiro said with a cough. Tadashi's face fell.<p>

"Oh no. you're already getting sick. Get Aunt Cass to take your temperature ASAP." Tadashi ordered. Hiro obeyed and rushed downstairs.

"Well, it looks like we're both sick Dashi." Hiro observed as they were both in their beds.

"Yup. Nice going knucklehead. What a great doctor you turned out to be." Tadashi said accusingly. Hiro laughed nervously.

"Yeah, sorry about that by the way." Hiro said, scratching his head and coughing.

"It's alright. Hey, now that we're both sick, you can come here." Tadashi offered. Hiro jumped at the offer and bolted to his brother for comfort.

"Good, because I'm getting f-freezing." Hiro stuttered as he was exposed to the cold air when he got out of bed.

"You're unbelievable, you know that right?" Tadashi asked as he was drifting off. Hiro yawned in response.

"Night." Tadashi whispered.

Well that's the last request for now. I don't want to get too many and not be able to do them. I might still do some time to time if I have enough time (Damn I said time three times, Damn that's five now). Or if the request is just really good. Anyways, hope y'all liked it.

-Girl you wouldn't expect


	29. Chapter 29

Brothers

29

So this is just some fluff. This is multiple little shorts in one chapter. Like they're gonna be super short.

Normal POV

Hiro: 8

Tadashi: 14

Hiro and Tadashi were currently in the kitchen where Hiro had insisted that they simply had to have hot chocolate in the freezing 20 degree Fahrenheit whether.

"Hiro, can you get two mugs from the cabinet?" Tadashi asked as he stirred the mix into the milk and water on the stove.

"For sure." Hiro replied, walking over to the cabinet. He reached for the handle with his tiny little hands, but was too short to grasp it. Tadashi noticed Hiro hopping up and down like a bunny trying to open it, and laughed. Hiro turned around to give Tadashi a glare, who quickly ceased laughing and went back to stirring.

With determination, Hiro jumped higher and higher before he finally got the cabinet open. The next task was getting the mugs out. Hiro's hopes sank. There was no way he could get the mugs out on his own. He lowered his head in sorrow and poked his lip out.

Suddenly, he felt himself being lifted up and was shocked.

"Dashi?" He asked in confusion.

"Need a lift Hiro?" Tadashi asked, hoisting his little brother up to reach the mugs. Hiro smiled gratefully and grabbed two mugs.  
>Tadashi placed him back down and went back to stirring once more.<p>

"Thanks Dashi." Hiro said shyly.

"Anytime." Tadashi replied with a chuckle.

*Next

Hiro: 4

Tadashi: 12

"Wow Dashi, you have a weely soft face." Hiro said adorably, poking his older brother's face.

Tadashi smiled in response and let Hiro poke him.

"You have weely dark bwown eyes too Dashi." Hiro mused, staring at them.

Tadashi crossed his eyes, causing Hiro to laugh.

"Dashi you being silly." Hiro said in amusement, clapping his hands together.

"No, you're being silly you bonehead." Tadashi said, nuzzling his head into Hiro's stomach. Hiro giggled at this and pushed Tadashi away lightly.  
>"Dashi no! That tickles." Hiro said in mock anger. Tadashi laughed and lay his head down in Hiro's lap.<p>

"Dashi you have huuuuuge ears!" Hiro exclaimed, pulling at them lightly. Tadashi looked at Hiro with a playful expression.

"Hiro, you've got a big mouth." Tadashi said, pinning Hiro down on the carpet.

"Dashi what are you doing?!" Hiro asked with a laugh.

"Something I should've done a long time ago." Tadashi replied, blowing little raspberries on Hiro's stomach.

Hiro shrieked with laughter and kicked his legs back and forth.

"Dashi you're sillyyyyy!" Hiro sang with giggles here and there.

"Well that's okay. You still love me, right?" Tadashi asked.

Hiro pretended to think about it. Tadashi picked him up and held him upside-down to make him respond faster. Hiro let out an "Eeep!" of surprise before giggling again.

"Yes I love you Dashi. But you love me most. Right?" Hiro asked.

"I don't know Hiro. I might love school more." Tadashi said playfully. Hiro gasped in horror.

"You don't weely mean that. Do you Dashi? I can be better than school. I pwomise I'll be a good boy. Then you'll love me more, wight?" Hiro asked, almost pleading. Tadashi roared in laughter and Hiro pouted with his puppy face.

"Aww Hiro. I love you more than anything. You're already the best brother I could ever have." Tadashi said, giving him a hug.

"Dashi you have a weeeeely big heart." Hiro concluded with a satisfied smile, returning the hug.

*Next

Hiro: 3

Tadashi: 7

"Dashi no leave me!" Hiro begged, clinging onto his older brother's leg.

"C'mon Hiro let go of me. I need to go to school." Tadashi replied irritably. His brother was so annoying sometimes.

"B-but Nii-san pwomsied to pway with me!" Hiro cried out, sniffling into the leg.

"Hiro I'll play with you when I get back from school okay?" Tadashi asked, trying to shake his younger brother off.

"No! Dashi stay!" Hiro cried out with a sob.

"No Hiro. Dashi needs to go to school." Tadashi explained, trying to get out of the door.

"Dashi pwease don't go! No leave me! No go! Dashi no go!" Hiro begged, burying his little face into his brother's leg.

"Hiro, where are mom and dad?" Tadashi asked, getting frustrated. At this rate, he was going to lose his perfect attendance award.

"Mommy in bathwoom. Daddy at work." Hiro replied with sniffles here and there.

"Please let me go Hiro. Your baby sitter will be here soon. You and she can have lots of fun together." Tadashi explained, hoping to get Hiro to let him go.

"But I want Nii-san. Not babysittew." Hiro blubbered, clinging on to Tadashi tighter.

"Hiro let go right now." Tadashi said firmly. Hiro stiffened at Tadashi's tone.

"Now Hiro I mean it. Let go of my leg." Tadashi said, using his warning voice.

"But- "No buts Hiro! God you can be so annoying sometimes. I need to go to school and you're making me late. Do you want me to get in trouble Hiro?! Is that what you want?!" Tadashi shouted at him.

Hiro's grip loosened and he looked up at Tadashi with innocent eyes and he stuck his thumb in his mouth.

"I just want my Nii-chan." Hiro said in an innocent baby voice that gurgled due to the thumb in his mouth.

"Well I just want to get to school on time, but I guess we both aren't getting what we want now are we?" Tadashi said, sauntering out the door. Hiro had tears coming out of his eyes and that's when Tadashi looked back, though he wished he hadn't.

Hiro looked so vulnerable and lonely. Like someone had deliberately sucked all the happiness out of him. He was blubbering and his nose was running.

Tadashi ran back to the house and hugged Hiro tightly.

"I'm sorry otouto. I won't leave you if you don't want me to." Tadashi promised him.

"What bout your school?" Hiro asked with a sniffle.

"You're more important to me than a stupid building." Tadashi replied.

"And I'm sorry Hiro. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that. I won't do it again." Tadashi promised.

"Pinky swear?" Hiro asked, ceasing his crying.

"Pink swear." Tadashi said, wiping Hiro's tears with one hand and linking their pinkies with another.

'How am I gonna explain this to the principal?' Tadashi thought as Hiro nuzzled into him.

*Next

Hiro: 14

Tadashi: 18

"So you'll be okay home alone?" Tadashi asked his little brother.

"Yes you worry wart. It's not the first time I've been home alone." Hiro reminded.

"I know, but with Aunt Cass sorting things out in America, and me in college, you'll be home alone most of the day for the next few weeks. You sure you don't want a sitter?" Tadashi asks worriedly.

"Geez bro, I'll be perfectly fine. I know not to answer the door. I'm fourteen, I don't need a sitter. And you'll be home in 6 hours or so, so don't sweat it." Hiro said.

"Okay, but don't think that just because you've graduated, you can sit around at home doing nothing forever." Tadashi warned.

"Why not? I did the learning. Now is the time to relax." Hiro argued.

"True. Just don't expect to do it forever. Mom and dad wanted to see us both go to college." Tadashi reminded.

"Well it's not like they can see it anymore anyway." Hiro mumbled.

"What?" Tadashi asked with narrow eyes and waning voice.

"Nothing, I'll research some colleges while you're gone." Hiro said sweetly. Tadashi bonked him on the head lightly. "That's what I thought you said. Now be a good boy and don't do anything stupid. Also, you've got me on speed dial, so if there's any trou- "Yeah yeah. Got it. I'll call you. I know. And you'll check up on me every hour. I got it. Bye Tadashi." Hiro sang, pushing his older brother out the door.

"O-okay. Bye. Be safe." Tadashi said as he left.

"Will do." Hiro complied.

-Page break-

"I cannot believe you went BOT FIGHTING!" Tadashi exclaimed, anger evident in his usually calm brown eyes.

"That's more unbelievable than the fact that you attached FUCKIN TRACKERS on me?!" Hiro spazzed, letting his hands do most of the talking.

"Don't change the subject!" Tadashi warned in anger.

"I didn't! What you did was a massive invasion of my privacy!" Hiro shouted with a glare that matched Tadashi's.

"What you did was an invasion of your safety!" Tadashi retaliated.

"Why can't you just admit you're wrong like you always are?!" Hiro questioned.

"Hiro! You are FORBIDDEN do go bot fighting, no scratch that. You're forbidden to go ANYWHERE for the next month!" Tadashi declared.

"Oh yeah? How are you gonna stop me? You have college. You won't know what the hell I do while you're gone." Hiro fired back.

"HIRO!" Tadashi shouted in ferocity.

"TADASHI!" Hiro retaliated.

"I'M DONE WITH YOU!" Tadashi screamed, stomping upstairs.

"NO, I'M DONE WITH YOU!" Hiro retaliated in malice, stomping after him.

They both angrily stomped harshly to their respective beds and gave unsubtle glares at each other.

Hiro's face softened as he looked at the tracker he had found on his hoodie. In his older brother's defense, Tadashi _was_ only looking out for him.

On the opposite side of the room, Tadashi was softening up his glare as well. In his younger brother's defense, Hiro _was _still just a kid. Graduating from high school at fourteen meant he was mature, but not exactly ready to be treated as an adult.

"I'm sorry." They said in sync.

They laughed softly.

"We both screwed up, huh?" Hiro asked, tossing Tadashi the tracker.

His older brother caught it and stiffened. He let out a sigh.

"Yeah. Brothers?" He asked with a smile.

"Always. But no more trackers." Hiro said in slight sternness.

"No more bot fights." Tadashi countered in the same tone.

"Tadashi that isn't fair." Hiro complained.

"Will it be fair when I have to be upset because something happened to my baby brother? My only family left?" Tadashi asked, making Hiro feel guilty.

"Oh alright. Keep the trackers on my hoodie, but then I'm going to go bot fighting more often." Hiro reasoned.

"Deal. And I'll drag you out before someone can kill you." Tadashi said.

"Good. Now make me some hot chocolate. My throat hurts from yelling at your stupidity." Hiro said playfully.

"PFT, I yelled way louder than you Hiro." Tadashi bragged.

"No you didn't." Hiro disagreed.

"Yes I did." Tadashi said firmly.

"No you didn't!" Hiro said, raising his voice.

"HIRO!" Tadashi yelled.

"TADASHI!" Hiro yelled back.

And so they argued again and again. Forgiving each other after every argument, not realizing that every fight was secretly bringing them closer together, for they would make hilarious stories to tell later.

*Next

Hiro: 15

Tadashi: 19

"Hiro, where do you think you're going at 1:00 in the morning?" Tadashi asked, making Hiro freeze in his tracks. He looked at Tadashi with a sheepish smile and gave him a comical wave.

"Tadashi! What are you doing up?" He asked nervously.

"I could ask you the same question." Tadashi said, crossing his arms. Hiro slumped his shoulders down in defeat.

"You got me. I was going to the candy store to get gummy bears." Hiro said with a sigh and heading to bed.

"Hold it right there liar." Tadashi said, grabbing Hiro's hand and pulling him toward him. Tadashi narrowed his eyes at Hiro.

"Where were you _really_ going?" the older brother asked.

"Nowhere now." Hiro answered with a nervous smile.

"You were sneaking out to go to Frost Point, weren't you?" Tadashi asked knowingly. Hiro was shocked.

"H-how did you know?" Hiro asked. Tadashi gave Hiro a look.

"Hiro, I'm your older brother. There's nothing you do that I don't know about." He answered.

Hiro's mind traveled to his internet history and he silently prayed Tadashi didn't know about _that_. Shaking his head of his hormonal teenage thoughts, he faced Tadashi with a guilty as charged expression.

"Hiro you know your curfew. Go to sleep." Tadashi advised.

Sighing and retreating to his bed, Hiro plopped himself under the covers.

He heard Tadashi come to the bed and he braced himself for scolding.

"Hiro, you know Aunt Cass put that curfew because she cares about you, right?" Tadashi asked.

Hiro rolled his eyes even though Tadashi couldn't see.

"Really? Because I dunno why, but I had the tiniest inkling that she put it there because _you_ snitched on me for running away that one time and suggested a punishment." Hiro said in utter sarcasm.

Tadashi sighed and sat on Hiro's bed.

"You know I love you, right Hiro?" he asked.

Hiro shrugged. "Yeah, I love you too." He said emotionlessly.

"Hiro please don't be mad." He said.

"I'm not mad. I'm upset. Don't mix those two up." Hiro corrected.

"Don't be upset then." Tadashi said.

"I can't just turn off my emotions big brother." Hiro said with a chuckle.

"Well I can make you laugh." Tadashi said with a smirk.

"You BETTER not tickle me Tadashi. I will hurt you." Hiro warned.

"Too late." Tadashi said, pulling Hiro out from under the blanket and tickling his sides relentlessly.

Hiro tried not to, but couldn't help the laughs from being produced and coming out.

After the assault, Tadashi pulled back, satisfied.

"You're weird." Hiro said, pushing Tadashi off of the bed.

"Ouch! Hiro, you're gonna pay for that." Tadashi warned.

"I said I'd hurt you." Hiro replied. "Well let me return the favor." Tadashi said.

He grabbed Hiro's feet and pulled him down on the floor as well.

"Ow!" Hiro cried out, rubbing his head. Tadashi smirked in victory.

"Okay that's it you nerd. You're gonna get it." Hiro said, tickling Tadashi's feet.

"Did you forget that I'm not ticklish Hiro?" Tadashi asked with an amused smile.

"Shoot!" Hiro cried as Tadashi flipped him on his back and sat on him.

"Get off of me you flab roll!" Hiro cried, squirming from underneath him.

"Psh, flab roll my butt. I'm pretty skinny actually." Tadashi retorted.

"Yeah, maybe a skinny sumo wrestler." Hiro said, cracking up at his own joke. Tadashi was unamused.

He lightly put pressure on Hiro's back, causing him to groan in pain.

"Tadashi get off before I die!" Hiro cried out.

"Sorry Hiro. I don't think gravity is in your favor again." Tadashi said with a smile in voice.

"No _you're _not in my favor." Hiro grunted, trying to push Tadashi off of him, but to no avail.

"Aw Hiro. Don't be like that. I thought you loved me." Tadashi said with a laugh.

"Ugh, why are you so WEIRD?!" Hiro asked, wriggling his way out from underneath Tadashi. His older brother fell to the ground in surprise.

Then, Hiro jumped onto him and smiled in victory.

"I win again." Hiro said as Tadashi let out an "Oomph" from the sudden jump.

"Well, you did knock the wind out of me." Tadashi noted.

"Yeah. I did, didn't I?" Hiro said smugly.

"Alright don't get cocky. Go to bed now." Tadashi said. Hiro complied with his brother's wishes and went to bed while Tadashi did the same.

"Ohhhh." Hiro said after a few seconds.

"What?" Tadashi asked.

"I see what you did there Tadashi. Thanks." Hiro said with a light smile.

"Oh that. Well, you're welcome. Now sleep you big bonehead." Tadashi said.

Hiro smiled. Tadashi seemed to always know exactly how to cheer him up.

So this is pretty short, but hey! It's an update. I know I updated twice in one day, but I figured y'all deserved it. Hope you liked it


	30. Chapter 30

Brothers

30

Ages

Hiro: 3

Tadashi: 8

Tadashi's POV

"Hey bud, ready to go?" I asked with a smile. Hiro looked at me like I was an idiot.

"Dashi, I no wanna go." He said stubbornly, attending to his transformer toy.

I kneel down next to him, picnic basket in hand.  
>"Why not? Aunt Cass worked hard on this meal. We were gonna go to the park and have a picnic. Doesn't that sound like fun?" I asked him with enthusiasm. Hiro turned his entire body away from me, making me frown.<p>

"Hiro, what's wrong?" I ask him carefully.

"I don't wanna go." He replied more firmly.

"Why not? You used to love going on picnics." I point out. He looks at me with a hard face.

"Well I also used to wuv you!" He cried out randomly. I wasn't sure how to respond so I didn't. I just watched him for a while. He was frozen, not even touching his toy.

He slowly turned around and looked guilty. Putting his head down in shame, he poked his lip out.  
>"I'm sowwy Dashi. I didn't mean it. I wuv you." He apologized. I smile at him.<p>

"Don't worry about me bud. I'm more worried about you. What's up?" I ask him gently.

"It's not the same. Aunt Cass doesn't make the same food as Momma." Hiro admitted, nervously meeting my gaze. I figured he was afraid I'd be mad with his answer.

"Hey, it may not be the same, but it's still awesome! She makes great food. Lots of dessert." I say with a chuckle. Hiro perks up slightly at this bit of information.

"Like gummy beaws?" He asked hopefully. I laugh at him.

"Nope. But there's cookies and cupcakes." I say temptingly. Hiro gets a bit disappointed when I say there's no gummy bears, but looks somewhat pleased that there's teeth rotting goodness in the basket.

"It'll still be fun? Just us?" He asked uncertainly.

"Of course. I'm loads of fun." I defend. Hiro messes with his action figure before mumbling "You have a funny way of showing it."

"What do you mean by that?" I ask him.

He shrugs.

"Hiro c'mon. I'm like the king of fun times." I reason.

"All you do is talk about school." Hiro countered.

"Well I won't if you don't want me to. I can be fun." I say, defending myself.

"Pwove it!" Hiro commands, standing up and challenging me. I can't tell if he's serious or if he's just messing with me. Either way, I've gotta protect my title.

"Alright then." I say, picking him up. He looks at me with curious eyes.

I place him on my back.  
>"Dashi, as much as I wuv piggy back wides, that doesn't pwove that you're fun." Hiro huffs.<p>

"Oh doesn't it?" Then what does, oh wise one?" I ask in exasperation.  
>"Nope! Buying me gummy beaws is fun!" Hiro cries out with a sneaky smile.<p>

I roll my eyes. How subtle baby bro.

"That's fun?" I say questionably.

"For me it is!" He says, giggling like a maniac.

"How about I think about it if you come to the picnic?" I offer.

"Deal. Only if you gimmie a piggy back wide." Hiro says with crossed arms. I take this as an opportunity to pretend to drop him.

I lean back and as he's about to fall, he lets out a cry of surprise and fear. He clings onto me as tightly as humanly possible and buries his face into my back.

"Hiro, you okay?" I ask with a snort.

He doesn't answer.

"Bud?" I ask in concern.

"Mmmph oomph agmmph." He muffles in my back, tickling it a bit.

"What?" I ask in confusion.

"Pwease don't do that again Dashi. I'll go to the picnic." Hiro says.

"Sorry bud. I won't, now let's go. Aunt Cass is waiting outside." I say.

"Wait. Pwomise it'll be fun?" He asks hesitantly, thumb in mouth.

"Promise." I say to him.

We head out, Hiro perched securely on my shoulders.

"It's about time you two. Ready?" Aunt Cass asked with a bubbly smile.

"Weady!" Hiro called out, earning him a gush and ruffle of the hair (to his dismay) from our overly eager Aunt.

When we get to the park, Aunt Cass lays out the picnic blanket, I take the food out of the basket, and Hiro stays on my shoulders. Truthfully, it makes my job a little harder, but who am I to crush the little guy's spirit? He's so happy right now and I intend to keep him that way at all costs.

"You wanna eat now?" I ask Hiro.

He slowly gets off of my shoulders and crawls his way onto my lap.  
>"Wanna swing." He says.<p>

"Go ahead." I tell him with a smile.

"Dashi swing me?" He asks hopefully.

"Yeah okay. Let's go." I say, grabbing his hand. He happily skips along to the swings, dragging me along with him.

"Alright, let's get you on this swing." I say, lifting him up to the baby swings.

"No Dashi!" He cried, fidgeting furiously in my grasp. I put him down in shock.

"What's the matter?" I ask him.

"I'm no baby! I want weal swing!" He cries out childishly. I give an amused look to him.  
>"You sure Hiro? Those are for big kids." I say to him teasingly.<p>

"Dashi! I _am _a big kid. I'm like thiiiiis big." He says, stretching his arms out as wide as he can. I laugh at his adorableness before hoisting him up to the swing.

"Alright big kid, push yourself then." I say. He gives me a surprised look to which I return with a raised brow.

"Big kids push themselves." I say to him in an obvious tone. He looks down to hide his sadness from this news and swiftly tries to kick his legs in an attempt to swing himself.

Ten seconds in, he blows a breath of frustration and I see tears coming into his eyes, but he's trying to hide them from me.

"Want me to push you?" I ask him with a smirk.

He gives me a helpless look, almost giving in.

"Y-No! I'm a big kid. I can do it!" He insists with a newly found determined look.

"Okayyy." I say uncertainly, getting on the swing next to him. I start swinging and enjoying the wind in my face. I haven't felt this great in a while. I close my eyes to fully enjoy the feeling. I feel like I'm flying, like I'm free. Sighing in bliss, I swing even higher to the point where I can feel the metal rails holding the swings together wriggle and wiggle about. I laugh softly at the noise and pump my legs even higher.

Then, I remember Hiro and look to my side to see how he's going. I'm met with an empty swing. I quickly scan over the playground to see Hiro near the monkey bars. Walking over to him, I see that he gives me a hurt look.

"Hiro, want me to push you now?" I ask him lightly.

"Nope." He answers quickly.

"Why not?" I ask him.

"Because weally big kids do the monkey baws." He says in an obvious tone.

"I don't know Hiro, it's kind of dangerous." I say worriedly.  
>"Don't sweat it Dashi. I be safe. Watch." He says, swinging like a real monkey along the bars. He even goes as far as hanging himself upside down and giving me a goofy grin, accenting his teeth gap.<p>

"Alright monkey kid, let's get lunch." I say with a smile.

"Okay." He says, beginning to get down.

I head back, expecting him to follow. What I didn't expect was a cry of pain. I turn my head back so quickly, I might've gotten whiplash. There, on the ground, is my baby brother, clutching his knee in pain.

"Hiro!" I call out, rushing to his side. He has hot tears streaming down his face. "D-Dashi! I g-got an o-ouchie!" He wails in between his crying.

"Shh, you're fine. I'm here. I'm always here for you. Let me see it." I coo to him. His crying subsides a bit. Sniffling, he lets his hand off of his knee and looks away.

"Oh Hiro, you're gonna be just fine. It's only a little scratch." I assure him. In reality, I'm thanking my lucky stars that I remembered to pack the first aid kit in the picnic basket. I want to disinfect the cut and there's blood on it.

He sniffles again and looks at me with sorrowful eyes. "But it hurts." He blubbers in a babyish tone.

"Oh c'mon Hiro. It's not that bad." I say to calm him down.

"But my hand huwts too!" he protests, holding it up for me to inspect. I can see now that he just wants to be babied. Just to make sure, I test him.

"On a scale of one to ten, who would you rate your pain?" I ask him like I usually did, checking the scratches on his hand out.

"A million billion jillion kazillion." He says with a whimper, clinging onto me like a lifeline.

"A million billion jillion kazillion huh? This calls for drastic measures. I'm going to have to pull out the transformer Band-Aids. That okay?" I ask him. Hiro nods into my chest quickly. I hold in a laugh and hug him back.

"We're also going to have to clean the cuts thoroughly. I'm going to have to disinfect them." I explain to him.  
>Hiro looks up at me in nervousness, but tries to hide it. "Okay Dashi. I can take it. I'm a big kid." He says, puffing out his chest and releasing me from the hug.<p>

"Alright big kid, let's get back to Aunt Cass." I say, beginning to walk back, but stop when I don't hear Hiro's footsteps behind me. I instantly know what he wants, but I decide to baby him about it.

"I'm also going to have to carry you Hiro. You shouldn't walk with an injured knee." I say to him, picking him up. He cries in happy surprise and hooks his arms around my neck for support.

When we get back to the picnic place, Aunt Cass has the food laid out and is waiting for us.  
>As I'm cleaning Hiro's cuts up, I explain to Aunt Cass what happened who is concerned, but is fine when she sees me taking care of him.<p>

"Dashi!" Hiro cries out, yanking his knee back in alarm.

"What's wrong?" I ask him.

"Buwns." He says.

"It burns?" I ask. He nods with a sniffle.

Alright then, I'll be careful. Trust me, this'll make you feel better." I promise. Hiro is reluctant, but still slowly pushes his leg toward me to treat. I quickly clean the cut and stick a Band-Aid on it as he silently winces. Hiro observes my handiwork and gives me a look of approval.

"Alright let's eat now. I don't know about you, but I'm starving." I say to Hiro.  
>"Me too! I'm weaaalllly hungwy!" Hiro exclaims, pointing to his teeny tiny belly. I laugh at the fact that he's probably going to the just one sandwich and say he's full.<p>

Aunt Cass still hands him a plate with a sandwich, some chips, and salad. Hiro immediately grabs the sandwich and bites into it blissfully.

"Wow there Hiro. Try and takes bites smaller than your face." I say in amusement. Hiro blushes in embarrassment and starts taking smaller bites.

I notice Hiro's blush stayed. Wait a second, that's not a blush. Hiro's left part of his face is a fresh scarlet and it looks really sensitive. I want to write it off as nothing, but can't. As Hiro continues to chew and munch, I stay focused on his face and get really worried. I see Aunt Cass observing his face as well.

I notice Hiro's rubbing his eyes rapidly all of a sudden and his nose is getting pretty runny.  
>"Hiro?" I question in worry.<p>

"Dashi! I feel weiwd!" he cries out, holding his stomach.

I don't know what to do and Aunt Cass calls the hospital as Hiro starts getting a few hives.

I grab Hiro's plate and observe the food. I don't understand what's wrong. There's just potato chips, arugula salad, and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

Hold on. Hives, runny nose, rubbing his eyes? Hiro's got an allergic reaction! But to what?

Hiro's wailing again and I get extremely scared. If not treated immediately, Hiro could be in deep trouble.

"Aunt Cass, this is bad, I need to get Hiro to the hospital ASAP. It's only a block or two from here, I'm gonna carry him." I say, picking him up and rushing off before Aunt Cass can even protest.

"Don't worry Hiro, you'll be just fine." I assure him, running as fast as I can.  
>"Ta-Tada…" He trails off, choking on his words, sobs, and pain. I feel my heart clench. I'm getting more afraid by the second. Hiro could very well stop breathing completely if this wasn't looked at immediately. I don't know what to do except keep on running and never look back.<p>

I finally burst through the revolving door and get my baby bro to a doctor.

"He'll be fine son, you got him here in the nick of time." The doctor said, giving me a pat on the shoulder. I look to Hiro with concern. His swelling is decreasing, but he's still breathing heavily, unable to speak.

"What happened to him?" I ask anxiously.

The doctor checks his clipboard.  
>"He's had an allergic reaction. Lucky for your brother here, it was only mild. If it was a more severe reaction, he would've been in a whole lot more trouble." The doctor analyzed, confirming my suspicions.<p>

"Allergic reaction to what?" I ask curiously.

"We're actually not 100% sure. List everything he ate all day." The doctor commanded.

"Umm, let's see. He had cinnamon toast crunch for breakfast. Then we had sandwiches and chips and salad for lunch at the park." I list off.

"What was in the salad?" he asks me, scrawling away at his clipboard.

"Hmm, there was lettuce, arugula, tomatoes, green onions, and cucumbers I believe." I list off again.

"I see. And what was in the sandwich?" He asks with a knowing smile. I can hardly see what's so amusing about all this, but none the less, I tell him.

"It was peanut butter and jelly." I say nonchalantly.

"There we go. It was an allergic reaction to peanuts." The doctor said.

"How can you be sure?" I ask him.

"Well, he showed all the signs of a mild peanut allergy. At first I assumed it was a pollen reaction when you mentioned being at the park, but when you mentioned a sandwich, I had an inkling that it was a peanut allergy." He explained.

"Oh. Okay. Well can I see my baby bro now? I'm really worried." I say to him.

"Sure, he should be stable by now." The doctor says, stepping aside from the door. I walk in to see a tired and overwhelmed Hiro.

"You okay bud?" I ask him. He shrugs. "I didn't think anything was wong Dashi. What happened?" He asked me in a groggy morning voice.

"Aww Hiro. You had an allergic reaction." I tell him.

"I don't know what that means, but I'm still weaaaallllly hungwy Dashi. Can I finish my sandwich?" He asks, making grabby gestures with his teeny tiny hands. I give him a weak smile.

"Hiro, you had an allergic reaction to the sandwich. You're allergic to peanuts." I tell him sadly. Hiro's face fell. "You mean, I can't eat sandwiches anymowe?" he asks, poking his bottom lip out in sadness. I melt at the look and want to tell him so badly that he can, but this is one thing I can't give in to. It's for is safety.

"Sorry bud. No peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. But I can make you different sandwiches. I'll put anything you want in them." I promise him after seeing tears well at the sides of his eyes. He sniffles and swipes at his eyes quickly.

"Even gummy beaws?" he asks shyly.

"Not sure that'd taste real good, but why not? If that's what you want, you got it." I tell him. He cracks a light smile, but it fades quickly.

"What's up?" I ask him, stroking his cheek soothingly. He pulls away and crosses his arms. Sometimes I hate Hiro's mood swings. I know he's three so it's understandable, but other times like now, they get on my nerves.

"You pwomised." He blubbers.

"I promised what?" I ask confused.

"That it would be fun. Like when mommy and daddy took us. This wasn't fun. I got a boo boo and had to come to the hospital." He says accusingly, pointing to his knee and face respectively. I feel guilty all of a sudden.

"Hey, how about we go to the swings before we go home? I'll even push you." I offer. He shakes his head.

"Nope. I'm a big kid. I can't be pushed." He says solemnly. I feel twice as guilty. Sometimes I forget that Hiro's a kid and doesn't really understand sarcasm. I decide here and now that I'm going to make it up to him.

"C'mon Hiro. We're going back to the park and I'm going to swing you. I always keep my promises, so we're going to have fun." I say in a determined tone. Hiro perks up slightly, but his face falls again.

"But Dashi. I'm no baby. I no be pushed anymowe. You said." He mentions again.

"Well I was just kidding. You can be a big kid and still be pushed on the swings. Okay?" I tell him softly.  
>"Pwomise?" He asks with his thumb in his mouth.<p>

"Pinky swear." I say, linking our pinkies. He giggles and gets off of the bed.

"My face is bettew, right?" He asks me cautiously.

"Yup." I say, then decide to mess with him just for kicks.

"Oh wait Hiro! There _is_ something on it." I say quickly, picking him up and sitting him back on the bed. He widens his eyes and sucks on his thumb some more.

"Whewe!? What is it?" he asks in his cute baby voice.

"There." I say, flicking his nose. He wrinkles it up in response and shakes his head.

"Gone?" He asks.

"Nope, there's also this." I say, tugging at his ears. He giggles because it tickled him a bit, but still looks at me seriously.

"Now?" He asks.

"Oh no Hiro. You've still got two eyes left on your face." I say in mock drama.

"Well, can you get it off be- Wait! Dashi! You being silly!" Hiro accuses, finally catching on to what I was doing. I burst into laughter and Hiro pouts.

"Say sowwy." Hiro demands, crossing his arms.

"Pft, no way. That was hilarious." I defend between chuckles. Hiro pokes out his bottom lip and pouts some more.

"O-okay, I'm sorry." I apologize, not able to resist the adorableness. Gosh, I need to quit falling for his stupid puppy dog face.

"Now let's swing!" Hiro says happily, hopping off and grabbing my hand.

When we get out of the room, I see that Aunt Cass has made it and is talking to the doctor with a serious expression.

"Aunt Cass, can Hiro and I go to the park? He didn't exactly get to have fun yet." I ask her.

"Honey, I think it's best that Hiro gets home and just relaxes." She says.

I look at Hiro's face and feel horrible. He looks super sad. I can see his true feelings in his eyes. They say 'I'm used to being disappointed'. He's trying his best not to whine and throw a tantrum. I can tell.

"Aunt Cass please? He's had a majorly cruddy day. Please let us go. Only for like ten minutes even?" I beg her. I see her bite her lip in thought. I pray she changes her mind.

"Oh alright. Ten minutes. That's all. If you're not home by then, I'll come get you myself, and I won't be happy," She warns as I run out with Hiro.

When we're at the park and I push him on the swing, I can see that he looks happy now and that makes me involuntarily smile.

"Thanks Dashi. You weally _do_ always keep youw pwomises." Hiro cries happily as he flies into the air.

"Anytime." I reply, enjoying the fact that he's having fun.

So this was a request from Gossip Girl and Jessieklove. The reason I didn't make it a cuckoo crazy allergic reaction was because it said Hiro had a mild allergy and so it wouldn't be severely anaphylactic. Take it from someone who has friends that have peanut allergies.

Anyways, I didn't want to write what the request was on at the beginning because that would've sort of spoiled it and it would've been boring in my opinion if you already knew what was gonna happen. I tries my best to have an element of surprise so I hope that was okay.

-Girl you wouldn't expect


	31. Chapter 31

Brothers

31

Ages

Hiro: 13

Tadashi: 16

So I sorta mixed two requests here. One was from KanaMac who suggested Hiro finding a huge gummy bear. The other is from tooobi who suggested them playing a rage causing videogame. Enjoy

Normal POV

"C'mon Tadashi. Be a nerd later. Lighten up and play one quick match with me." Hiro asked slyly.

"No means no Hiro. Now buzz off and let me finish my homework." Tadashi replied.

"You're so boring." Hiro complained.

"Maybe if you decided to apply for college instead of sitting around at home like a lazy bum, you'd be occupied too." Tadashi said.

"Nice attempt at being sneaky big bro, but you're never gonna convince me to apply to college." Hiro stated, peering over Tadashi's shoulder.

"Quit hovering over me." Tadashi commanded.

"Play with me." Hiro countered.

"If I play one round with you, will you leave me alone?" Tadashi asked.

"Three rounds." Hiro bargained.

"One." Tadashi said firmly.

"Three." Hiro replied in the same tone, but wore a smirk.

"Hiro, it's one or nothing." Tadashi warned.

"Three or I go bot fighting." Hiro threatened with a winning smirk.

"Ugh fine. But after three, I'm gone." Tadashi promised, firing up the Wii u.

"Sweet! I knew you'd give in for me." Hiro said with a laugh.

"Whatever. As soon as I beat you, I can finish my calculus homework in peace." Tadashi said.

Hiro scoffed. "That's cute Tadashi. How you think you can beat me." He said, tossing his brother a Wii remote and grabbing one for himself.

"I will beat you. I've been playing super smash brothers since before you were born." Tadashi pointed out.

"Which is exactly why it's embarrassing that I'm better than you at it." Hiro said smugly.

"You really think you're better than me?" Tadashi asked in amusement.

"Sure enough to bet on it." Hiro bragged.

"Alright. Three stock, no items, final destination, three rounds. Best two out of three. If I win, you have to do my homework for three weeks." Tadashi said.

"Sure, but WHEN I win, you have to buy me something I want." Hiro said.

"What is it?" Tadashi asked.

"If you're so sure you'll win, don't worry about it." Hiro said with a smirk.

"Oh how I want to smack that smile off of your face." Tadashi grumbled.

"But you can't because I'm irresistible." Hiro said with wide eyes and a snort.

"Whatever. Select your character already." Tadashi said.

"So we have a deal?" Hiro asked in glee.

"Yes it's a deal. Get ready to do my homework for a while." Tadashi said.

"Like hell. Get your wallet ready because trust me, that sucker's taking a hike when I get what I want." Hiro said, picking Pikachu from the menu.

Setting the rules to three stock and no items, Hiro picked final destination. The game started and Hiro easily won in a two minutes flat.

"You just got lucky." Tadashi murmured, starting the next round.

Hiro was winning with two stock and Tadashi was lagging behind with one stock and 78% damage. Biting his lip, he furiously clicked his buttons and shielded away like no tomorrow.

"What's wrong Tadashi? Resorting to running away like a coward are we?" Hiro asked in victory.

"Nope. You just need to quit spamming that cheap down B move." Tadashi defined.

"Excuses excuses. But whatever, I'll humor you. How about I don't use that move for the rest of the game?" Hiro suggested.

"Alright, you're on." Tadashi said, going directly at Pikachu.

He ordered Shulk to backslash Pikachu and the Pokémon went flying across the stage. When it was coming back and grabbed the edge, Shulk back-slashed again and Pikachu went off of the screen completely. With both brother's left with only one stock, the game got intense fast.

True to his word, Hiro didn't use Pikachu's lightning attack and with Tadashi countering almost all of Hiro's moves, they were soon even in damage. One last counter had Tadashi wining the round.

"Not so high and mighty without that B down move are we?" Tadashi asked smugly. Hiro shoved his brother aside and switched characters as did Tadashi. Now Hiro had Villager and Tadashi had Link.

When the game started, not more than fifteen seconds passed before Tadashi had a new complaint.

"Not fair, now you're just spamming the side B move!" Tadashi said in anger.

"I could say the same thing about those stupid bow and arrows! Who the hell do you think you are? Katniss Everdeen?!" Hiro spat, planting a tree.

"The arrows give you like 5% damage, that rocket gives like 20!" Tadashi argued, falling into the tree and losing another life.

"You're so cheap." Tadashi growled, smash attacking Hiro out of the stage.

"You're a sore loser." Hiro shot back, rocketing Tadashi once more.

"Whatever. Get ready to do my homework for three weeks." Tadashi said, throwing bomb after bomb at Hiro.

"I don't think so." Hiro said, getting on his rocket. When he hit Tadashi, he laughed maniacally and sang "With you I'm here, I'm a Rocketeer!"

"Cheapo to the max." Tadashi muttered.

Just as he was about to smash attack Hiro, the younger boy watered his tree and it sent Tadashi flying out the stage, leaving Hiro to screech in victory.

"Yes yes yes! Thank you Villager! Now pay up!" Hiro cried, jumping up and down. Tadashi gave him a noogie and then let him go.

Hiro merely stuck his tongue out in response.

"Alright, where are we going?" Tadashi asked in dread.

"Don't be sad Tadashi. It's not your fault you suck at Super Smash Bros." Hiro said slyly.

"You'd think after the three other versions they'd take out that stupid down B move." Tadashi said as they walked to the store.  
>"Whatever. I beat you with Villager too." Hiro pointed out.<p>

"Don't remind me." Tadashi said.

"Now what do you even want? Gummy bears?" Tadashi asked as Hiro ushered him to the candy isle.

"Nope. Just one gummy bear." Hiro says with a smirk.

"That doesn't sound promising." Tadashi says as he's further dragged in the isle.

"That. I want THAT." Hiro says, pointing to the largest red gummy bear either of them has ever seen.

"How big IS that?" Tadashi asked, checking out the price.

"Really big." Hiro said, getting it off the shelf.

"THIRTY DOLLARS?!" He exclaimed.

"C'mon Tadashi. The thing is bigger than Mochi." Hiro defended.

"Remind me to never bet on a video game with you again." Tadashi groaned as he paid for the teeth rotting goodness.

BTW guys, I started yet another story. I feel more confident in my writing than ever have before. The story is called Learning to Love and honestly, I really love how it's turning out. I already have the ideas for the next few chapters and I think it's gonna be great. I'd really appreciate it if you'd check it out. Thanks for all your support. If I could meet you guys, I'd buy you all huge gummy bears!

-Girl you wouldn't expect


	32. Chapter 32

Brothers

32

Ages

Hiro: 6

Tadashi: 15

Normal POV

"Boys! Come down here!" Aunt Cass called from downstairs.

Tadashi came barreling down as soon as he heard it and panted heavily.

"Yeah Aunt Cass?" He asked.

"Where's Hiro?" She asked.

"Hiro!" Tadashi called from the stairs.

No response.

"One sec." Tadashi said, running back up.  
>Aunt Cass tapped her foot impatiently.<p>

"Hey! Put me down! Help! This is assault!" She heard her youngest nephew protest as Tadashi carried him down despite his struggles to break free.

"Stay here bonehead. Aunt Cass needs to tell us something." He scolds, putting his brother down.

"I was beating my high score too." Hiro mumbled, crossing his arms and turning away from his older brother. Tadashi rolled his eyes and looked at his aunt expectantly.

"Boys. You're Uncle Errol is visiting." She reported uneventfully.

"Uncle Errol?" Tadashi and Hiro asked in sync, though their tones held differences. Tadashi's held distaste, while Hiro's held confusion.

"Why?"  
>"Who's Uncle Errol?"<p>

Both brothers asked their questions at the same time.

"He wants to visit you two just to check up on how I'm doing as a mom." Aunt Cass replied stiffly.

"Who is Uncle Errol?" Hiro asked

"How long is he staying? When is he getting here?" Tadashi asked.

"He's staying for a few days. Three at most if we're lucky. He's getting here tomorrow." Aunt Cass replied.

"Who's Uncle Errol?" Hiro asked again, all thoughts of his high score gone from his mind. Now he was just curious.

"I'm surprised he has the decency to show his face here after what he did." Tadashi said with a hint of anger. Seeing that Tadashi was getting upset, Hiro got a bit scared. Tadashi never really got angry.

"Who is Uncle Errol?" He tried once more.

"I can't believe it either, but he insisted on this. Something about how I probably wasn't 'fit' to take care of you two." She said in irritation.

"That's a load of bull. You're amazing at taking care of us and I wouldn't want anyone else doing it. _Errol _can talk to _me_ if he's got issues with that." Tadashi said firmly.

"WHO IS UNCLE ERROL?!" Hiro screamed, startling Aunt Cass.

"Hiro!" Tadashi scolded, shoving him lightly with his arm.

"What? I asked three times." Hiro said with a lazy smile. Tadashi just shook his head.

"He's your uncle." Aunt Cass said shortly, walking out of the living room and downstairs to the café, most likely to do some stress eating.

"Nice going bonehead." Tadashi said with a disapproving frown.

"What did I even do?! I always get crapped on." Hiro said in frustration, stomping upstairs to his room.

Tadashi sighed and walked after him.  
>"Hiro, it's not your fault. Uncle Errol is just kind of a sore subject." Tadashi said to him.<p>

"How come I've never heard of him?" Hiro asks curiously.

"We don't like talking about him. Now don't go bringing this up to Aunt Cass, but he's her ex-husband." Tadashi explained.

"Ex?" Hiro questions.

"Meaning they got a divorce." Tadashi explained.

"Why?" Hiro asked.

"Because they had disagreement. Look, you shouldn't worry about stuff like this, just try not to talk to him too much, okay?" Tadashi asked.

Hiro just went to playing his game, but Tadashi stopped him before he could start it.

"Your word Hiro. Don't go talking to him just to talk. Only respond if he asks you a question and even then, try to just avoid him." Tadashi said a bit sternly.

Tadashi was being uncharacteristically strict, but Hiro didn't want him cross so he agreed.

"Okay Dashi. I promise." He says.

"Good. Because if Errol is visiting, nothing good can come out of it." Tadashi grumbled, collapsing on his bed.

*Page Break*

The doorbell rang bright and early in the morning while Hiro was the only one awake. Rushing to the door, the little boy peeked through the peep hole. He saw a nice looking man with dark brown hair, a dark brown mustache and beard, and a cream colored hat with a matching cane. He had a smile that said 'Top of the morning to ya!'

Hiro opened the door just as he heard footsteps pitter patter down the stairs.

"Hey mister." Hiro greeted. The man smiled and patted Hiro's head (To his dismay).

"Hello there. Are you Hiro by any chance?" He asks.

Hiro widened his eyes. "How'd you know?! Are you a psycho?!" Hiro asked in shock. The man chuckled. "No son." He said.

"Son?" Hiro asked in confusion.

"It's just a term of endearment." The man explained.

"Uh, sure. Okay." Hiro said with a shrug.

"Where is your aunt?" he asked.

"I'm not supposed to talk to strangers too much. Dashi says it's not safe, but he worries too much anyways." Hiro babbled.

"I'm no stranger. I'm your Uncle Errol." He greeted with an amused smile. Hiro's eyes widened in recognition and his mouth made an 'oh' shape.

"Hiro, who are you talking to?" Tadashi asked, rubbing his eyes from grogginess. They fixed themselves on Uncle Errol and narrowed at the man.

"Tadashi my boy!" He cried, moving in for a hug. Tadashi dodged it.

"Errol." He simply said.

"Where is Cass?" he asked.

"In the kitchen. Not that it's any of your business where she is really." He said, mumbling the last part.

"Now Tadashi, I know you've heard things about me, but I'm here to assure you that I'm not a horrible man." He said.

Hiro looked at Tadashi in wonder. He thought about what his brother would do next.

"Stop trying to give me an explanation. You don't owe me one." He said firmly.

"Come on Hiro. Let's go upstairs. I think I lost something." Tadashi said, grabbing his younger brother's hand.

Knowing better than trying to talk to Tadashi at a moment like this, Hiro silently let Tadashi drag him up.

"Dashi?" Hiro asked hesitantly.

"What?" He practically growled as Hiro winced.

"Sorry Hiro, Errol always puts me in a bad mood." Tadashi apologized.

"Well that's what I wanted to talk about. Why? He seems like a really nice guy." Hiro says nervously, twiddling his thumbs around. Tadashi could see that Hiro was scared that he'd snap so he calmed down.

"Hiro, I don't expect you to understand this because you were younger, but Errol just can't be trusted." Tadashi said, leaving it at that.

"Okay." Hiro replied, going back to his game.

A while later, Hiro noticed that Tadashi was busy in his homework, so he headed downstairs to see what Uncle Errol was up to. He seemed really nice to Hiro.

He headed down the stairs and was halfway down when he heard Aunt Cass and Uncle Errol talking.

"C'mon Cass, give me a chance. I've changed, and for the better!" Uncle Errol insisted.

"Errol, I don't want to hear it. Just be out of here as soon as humanly possible." Aunt Cass muttered.

"Oh come on Cass. Remember what we had? It was something beautiful." Uncle Errol defended.

"Don't bring up our marriage into this. You're only digging yourself a deeper hole." Aunt Cass warned.

"But we were casserole! Cass and Errol." Uncle Errol defended adorably.

Aunt Cass's huff of angry breath didn't sound so appreciative.

Hiro tried not to laugh at the cheesiness of the statement, but let out a giggle or two because it was funny. Aunt Cass had made casserole for him and Tadashi only once and he faintly remembered it. All he could really remember was that it was one of the best things she ever made. She was smiling a lot in his memory too. Hiro wondered why she never made casseroles anymore.

He made himself noticeable by stepping harshly down the loud steps, not wanting them to know he'd heard them.

"Hey Aunt Cass." He greeted chirpily.

"Hey sweetie. Why don't you play with your brother while Errol and I talk?" She asked, hinting that she didn't want him there just yet.

"Nonsense. Let the little munchkin stay. I want to get to know him. It's why I came here after all." Uncle Errol said invitingly to Hiro's joy.

"Can I?" He asked Aunt Cass with big eyes.

"I guess." She said wearily.

"Why don't you come with me to get some tea for Errol?" She asked, getting up.

"Oh come on now Cass. Don't make the boy work while I'm here." Uncle Errol piped up.

"Yeah Aunt Cass. You should listen to the man." Hiro said goofily, not noting the sour look he received from his aunt.

Aunt Cass left in haste, promising she would return in a jiffy.

"Just call me Uncle Errol son." The man said with a warm smile.

"Okay Uncle Errol." Hiro said with a grin.

"So tell me, how old are you?" He asked.

"I'm six. But Dashi says I'm a lot smarter than six. He says I can do high school work!" Hiro rambled, enjoying his uncle's company.

"You really like your brother huh?" Uncle Errol asked fondly.

Hiro nodded eagerly.

"Specially when buys me gummy bears for being good. He's the bestest brother in world. I know bestest isn't a word, but Dashi says it's okay to say as long as I remember that it isn't real. He always gives me good advice. He also says I talk too much, but I think he's just crazy." Hiro went on.

"That so? Well how about I take you out for some ice cream and you can get gummy bears on it?" Uncle Errol asks.

"Gummy bears AND ice cream? Dashi wouldn't like that. He likes moderation." Hiro said quickly, though anyone could see that he loved the idea.

"Well I won't tell him if you won't." Uncle Errol said with a wink.

Hiro giggled.

"You're a funny guy Uncle Errol. How come you never visited before?" Hiro asked before cursing himself. His brother's words echoed in his head.

"_Don't go talking to him just to talk. Only respond if he asks you a question and even then, try to just avoid him."_

Hiro knew Tadashi wouldn't like him talking to the man, but he couldn't help it. Something about him intrigued Hiro. His willingness to listen was also a bonus. Aunt Cass listened too, but she was often busy working and tended to unintentionally ignore him and Tadashi was at school a lot of the time so it was nice to have someone pay him undivided amounts of attention.

"So how about that ice cream?" He asked, ignoring Hiro's question.

"Now?" Hiro asked in shock.

"What's now?" Aunt Cass asked, setting down a tray with black coffee.

"I wanted to take the munchkin for some ice cream. If it's alright with you of course." Uncle Errol explained.

"I don't know Errol. He needs to be in bed by nine if he's gonna wake up for school tomorrow." Aunt Cass said.

"I don't have school tomorrow Aunt Cass. It's a holiday, remember?" Hiro piped up, really wanting to go.

"Okay fine. But I'm coming too." Aunt Cass said quickly.

"But don't you have to run the café?" Hiro asked.

"Well I can leave for a while." Aunt Cass insisted.

"Nonsense Cass. You can trust me to take the munchkin around the block can't you?" Uncle Errol insisted back.

"Yeah! He's great!" Hiro exclaimed.

Aunt Cass sighed.

"Please Aunt Cass. Pretty please with gummy bears on top?" Hiro pleaded with wide eyes.

"Oh alright. But ask Tadashi if we wants to go too." Aunt Cass said, leaving to the kitchen.

"You got it Aunt Cass. Be right back Uncle Errol." Hiro called, running upstairs.

"Look Errol, I don't know what you're trying to pull, but you leave my nephew alone. You hear me?!" Aunt Cass asked with malice.

"My goodness Cassandra. Can't you just believe that I want to get to know the little munchkin better?" He asked.

"My name's not Cassandra, it's just Cass and no, I cannot, do not, and will not believe that." Aunt Cass said, walking into the kitchen.

Hiro came barreling down the steps without his brother.

"He said he wanted to, but had too much homework, so it's just us." Hiro delivered.

"Alright, well let's get a move on then." Uncle Errol said, getting up with the support of his cane.

"So why do you have to use a cane?" Hiro asked.

"It's actually a secret. Can you keep it?" He asks in a whisper. Hiro nodded eagerly.

"It just goes well with my hat, but don't let your Aunt know that. Can't have her treating me worse than she already does." He says with a chuckle.

"You smile a lot Uncle Errol. Kind of like my dad used to before he went to live in the sky." Hiro said with a grin as they walked outside.

"Is that so? That's a good thing right?" He asked in amusement.

"Of course Uncle Errol. My dad was a great guy, like you. I think you two would've gotten along really well." Hiro says thoughtfully.

"Believe it or not, I knew your father. And you're right munchkin. We did get along really well." Errol says with a sad smile.

"Really?! That's great! Wait till I tell Dashi. When he knows you and my dad were friends, there's no way he'll hate you!- I mean, he doesn't hate- I mean.." Hiro trailed off lamely. He was worried that Uncle Errol might get mad or something and braced himself. Hiro knew he should've listened to Tadashi. He talked too much sometimes.

To his relief and surprise, Uncle Errol merely laughed.

"It's alright munchkin. I know your brother doesn't really have a soft spot for me." He admitted, but he didn't use a bitter tone.

"Why do you keep calling me munchkin?" Hiro asked.

"You don't like it?" Uncle Errol asked.

"Well no, it's not that. I'm just curious." Hiro said.

"Well, I think it suits you enough to be your nickname. Don't you?" Errol asked.

"If you think so." Hiro said shyly.

"Well, we're here. Get whatever your heart desires." Uncle Errol insisted.

"Really?" Hiro asked in wonder, looking at all the flavors.

"Really munchkin." He replied, smiling in adoration at the boy.

*Page Break*

Back at the café.

"Hey Aunt Cass, where's Hiro?" Tadashi asked, entering the kitchen.

"Oh, he went to the ice cream parlor with Uncle Errol. I thought you would want to go along!" Aunt Cass said in surprise.

"Uncle ERROL? And Hiro?! Alone?! WHAT?!" Tadashi shouted.

"I thought he told you!" Aunt Cass exclaimed.

"When he mentioned the ice cream parlor, I assumed that he YOU were taking him! Not that cretin!" Tadashi cried, running out the door in a flash.

*Page Break*  
>Back at the parlor<p>

Hiro and Errol sat in a booth. Hiro had three scoops of vanilla ice cream coated from head to toe in gummy bears. He even got the man serving them to pour some gummy bears inside the cone. Uncle Errol just had a fudge bar.

Suddenly, Hiro spotted Tadashi and waved to him.

"Look Uncle Errol, it's Dashi!" Hiro exclaimed.

"Hiro! There you are!" Tadashi cried in relief, engulfing him in a hug.

"Yeah. I said I'd be here." Hiro said in confusion, squirming his way out of the hug.

"I thought you meant with Aunt Cass." Tadashi said through clenched teeth, glaring at Uncle Errol.

"Well, you're done with your homework then?" Hiro asked hopefully.

"Well no, but I'll stay anyways." Tadashi said, sitting down across from Hiro and Uncle Errol.

"Want some ice cream?" Hiro asked, holding out his cone.

"Wow there bud, that's a LOT of ice cream and gummy bears. You know how I feel about you eating too much junk food." Tadashi scolded lightly.

"Yeah, but Uncle Errol says that it's okay as long as I don't do it every day. And as long as I didn't tell you. Whoops, I just told you. Sorry Uncle Errol." Hiro said, hanging his head down in shame.

"It's alright munchkin. But honestly Tadashi, let the kid enjoy himself once in a while. Also, let me buy you a cone." Uncle Errol insisted.

Tadashi stiffened at Hiro's and Errol's words. Since when did Hiro listen to what their uncle said? And since when did Errol give Hiro a _nickname_?

"I don't need anyone to tell me how to raise _my_ brother thank you. And I don't want any ice cream from your money." Tadashi practically growled.

"Dashi! Don't be mean!" Hiro whispered.

Tadashi responded with a glare to his baby brother. Hiro sank in his chair and just licked his cone quietly from there.

"Come now Tadashi. Don't be so hard on the munchkin. It was my fault. I apologize." Uncle Errol said with a bow of his head.

"Save it you dirty cheater. Aunt Cass, Hiro, and I can't wait until you leave." Tadashi spat under his breath.

Uncle Errol's smile dropped and he seemed wounded when Tadashi finished.

Hiro wanted to say something, but Tadashi's glare from earlier had frightened him. Uncle Errol slowly stood up, grabbed his cane, and wordlessly walked out of the parlor.

"Dashi! That was mean. I don't care if I'm grounded, but I'm going after him." Hiro said determinedly, running out of the parlor in pursuit of his uncle. He didn't once turn around to see Tadashi's expression as he left.

Catching up with his uncle, Hiro panted. For an oldish man, his uncle could move fast.

"Uncle Errol wait! I don't wish you were gone. I like you a lot. You're just like dad. That's why I realized you were familiar." Hiro explained.

"That's awfully sweet munchkin, but there really isn't any point in staying when your Aunt and brother are this hostile toward me. Especially when they've got every reason to be." He said sorrowfully.

"Well it's not just their house. It's mine too and I say you're allowed to stay." Hiro said.

Uncle Errol chuckled, but kept walking. Suddenly, Hiro's brain shook and he got an idea coming.

"Okay fine. Run away from your problems. I mean, what does it matter that I was actually happy for a second again? So what if your nephew actually liked you? You're right, there's nothing you can do." Hiro said in a sad baby voice.

His uncle sighed and turned around to Hiro's delight.

"Sneaky one aren't you munchkin?" Errol asked with a small smile.

"Yup. Now tell me. What did you do that made them hate you so much? You're a great guy." Hiro said.

"Well…something I'm not proud of." Errol admitted.

"I know you and Aunt Cass got a divorce, but why?" Hiro asked quietly.

"I had an affair with another woman while I was with her." Uncle Errol admitted shamefully. Hiro gasped.

"But why? Aunt Cass is great! She's beautiful and kind and sweet and a great cook!" Hiro exclaimed.

"And gorgeous, pious, ladylike, clumsy, funny, stunning, and I was just too stupid to see what I had, blinded by my own selfishness." Uncle Errol said, turning from a thoughtful and 'in love' expression to a bitter one, clenching his cane in distaste of himself.

"I tried everything to get her back. Buy her jewelry, designer clothes, flowers, but nothing worked." He said miserably.

"Did you ever try apologizing?" Hiro asked.

"I doubt that'll work munchkin. Eventually, I just stopped trying. I meant what I said when I told your aunt I wanted to get to know you better. You're a splitting image of your father Hiro. Tadashi took after your mother, but you, you and your father could be mistaken for brothers." Uncle Errol said, seeming to be lost in his own world.

Tears were threatening to pour out of his eyes.

"Well maybe if you told Aunt Cass you were sorry, she'd forgive you. But that's not enough. You have to do something big! Don't think of expensive, think of thoughtful." Hiro pressed.

"I don't know munchkin." Errol said sadly.

HIRO! Come one. We are going home and I don't want to hear anything from you until we get there!" Tadashi yelled, grabbing his hand.

"Please Uncle Errol! I love you! If not for me, for Aunt Cass! Remember, you guys were CASSERROLE!" Hiro cried as Tadashi dragged him away.

*Page Break*

Back at the house, Tadashi was majorly upset with Hiro.

"Dashi please! I'm sorry I disobeyed you." Hiro apologized.

"That doesn't change the fact that you did it!" Tadashi said in anger.

'Maybe I can use this scenario as an example for how it would go with Uncle Errol and Aunt Cass.' Hiro thought.

"But I can't apologize for doing it. I'm sorry Dashi. Sorry for going against your words, but if I could go back in time, I'd still do it again." Hiro admitted.

"How exactly is this making me less angry?" Tadashi asked in frustration.

"I mean, I like Uncle Errol. He's like dad. I want him around." Hiro admitted, closing his eyes in fear of Tadashi's anger. Instead, he was met with Tadashi's jealousy.

"Why don't you just go live with him then? I mean, I guess _he _cared for you when you were sick. I guess _he_ comforted you for every nightmare. I guess _he_ let you keep Mochi when you found him as a stray. I guess _he _loves you to pieces and was always there for you when you needed it. I guess _I _wasn't enough." Tadashi finished, sounding defeated.

"Dashi no! It's not like that at all! I don't love Uncle Errol more than I love you! I just think he's a man who made a bad and stupid mistake that he honestly wants to fix!" Hiro defended with jazz hands.

"No one could ever replace you. You're one of a kind Dashi. Uncle Errol may be great, but you're spectacular. You're my brother. He's just my Uncle I only met today and want to help." Hiro finished, hoping Tadashi would forgive him.

"You really think he's sorry?" Tadashi finally asked quietly.

Hiro nodded.

"Well I still hate him!" Tadashi cried. Hiro looked down in dismay.

"But." Tadashi began, taking a deep breath.

"I'm sorry too. It was wrong of me to try and tell you who you can and can't hang out with and I'm sorry for that. If you like Uncle Errol, then that's your decision to make. I think you're mature enough to decide these things and I trust you. I'm also sorry for thinking you'd place him over me. You know how I can get." Tadashi said sheepishly.  
>"Forgiven! Not exactly the happy ending I was hoping for, but better than nothing." Hiro said, hugging Tadashi.<br>"Love you." Tadashi said.

"Love you too." Hiro replied, hoping the same would happen with Aunt Cass and Uncle Errol.

*page break*

"Is he really not coming?" Hiro asked in sadness as they sat at the dinner table a day later.

"No Hiro he isn't. Now quit pondering over that low life and eat your dinner." Aunt Cass commanded, angrily chewing her chicken.

"He's not a lowlife! He's a great man!" Hiro defended.

"Hiro, not now." Tadashi whispered, shaking his head.

Hiro unwillingly obliged, picking at his mashed potatoes offhandedly.

"You okay Hiro?" Tadashi whispered.

Hiro sighed. "I just wish that Aunt Cass and Uncle Errol could like each other again. I mean, we fight all the time, but we still like each other. We're always brothers for life. I wish Aunt Cass and Uncle Errol would make up." Hiro admits in a whisper, unknowingly making a broken heart with what was left with his mashed potatoes.

"Well our aunt and uncle's relationship is a bit different than ours." Tadashi explains.

"I know. I just thought that maybe Uncle Errol cared enough to try and make things right." Hiro whispers back sadly, getting up from the table.

"Hiro, finish your food." Aunt Cass said.

"I'm not hungry." Hiro said.

"We only just started eating." Aunt Cass pointed out. Hiro just shrugged in response.

Before Aunt Cass could scold Hiro, the doorbell rang.

"Could it be him?!" Hiro asked excitedly, running to the door. He opened it to only find a strange man with a package.

Tadashi came behind him.

"Package for Tadashi Hamada?" the man asked, holding a pen out. Hiro's face dropped instantly and he sauntered to the stairs.

"Hiro, wait! Oh my effin god. Hiro come here right now!" Tadashi yelled. Hiro walked back to the door in confusion.

"What?" He asked.

"Look." Tadashi breathed.

Hiro's eyes widened in hope, happiness, and disbelief.

"UNCLE ERROL!" He cried, running out to meet him. The merry man was walking down the street casually, but he had a bouquet of flowers in one hand and a box in the other.

"Munchkin!" Uncle Errol greeted back.

"You came back!" Hiro cried in delight.

"What can I say? You convinced me and I think I finally found something thoughtful enough." He said with a wink. "Well, it's a start, but flowers isn't going to completely cut it." Hiro said.

"You didn't see what's in the box." He said, flashing a toothy smile. Hiro noted how he had a golden tooth.

"I knew you'd come." Hiro said in sheer joy.

"I can't believe it, but my baby bro was right. I guess I was wrong about you. I still can't forgive what you did do Aunt Cass, but I can accept that you're trying to make things right." Tadashi said in respect, with a bow.

Errol crushed Tadashi in a hug and held him close. "Thank you son." He said.

"Yeah yeah, now, g-go and do what you came here to do in the first place." Tadashi said, pulling away in embarrassment.

Uncle Errol nodded gratefully and walked in nervously. Tadashi and Hiro sneaked behind him.

"Errol?! What in the name of pie are you DOING here? Didn't you leave to your fancy mansion yet?!" Aunt Cass asked in irritation.

"I came back to make things right." He started.

"I knew it! You don't give a flying fig about the boys. You just came here to weasel your way back into my life." Aunt Cass said in distaste. Hiro wanted to barge in through their hiding spot to tell her off, but Tadashi held him back.

"No Cass. To patch things up. I swear to you that I want nothing but your forgiveness. Cass Hamada, I am so deeply sorry for the pain and misery I caused you. No one as sweet and precious as you deserves what I did to you and for that I cannot express how sorry I am." Uncle Errol said, presenting her the flowers.

Aunt Cass was shocked if anything. She seemed frozen from Errol's confession.

"Boys. Leave. Errol and I need to talk." She said.

Tadashi and Hiro were sad and shocked to have been caught, but still went upstairs. Hiro was rooting for Uncle Errol as they went upstairs.

*Page Break*

20 minutes later, Hiro went bolting down the stairs and eagerly ran to the kitchen. Tadashi followed along.

"So how'd it go? Do you love each other again? Are we a happy family? Can Uncle Errol stay with us?" Hiro asked, bombarding them with questions.

"Take it easy munchkin." Uncle Errol said with a grin.

"Yes Hiro. We are friends. We decided to stay like that for a while. Uncle Errol will come visit more often, he promised." Aunt Cass revealed.

"Well it's no fairytale happy ending, but at least it's not so sad. This is great!" Hiro exclaimed, jumping up and down.

"Thanks munchkin. I couldn't have done this without you." Errol said, giving Hiro a rub on the head.

"Nice goin bud. I guess they _can _be like us. Bonds like these can never be broken." Tadashi added, giving Hiro a side hug.

"Say Uncle Errol? What was in the box anyways?" Hiro asked.

"A homemade chicken casserole." Uncle Errol said with a wink.

**So yeah. I don't know why, but I felt like Hiro and Tadashi had an uncle and Aunt Cass was married and finally though about a plot for that. Not a lot of brotherly stuff, but it's lightly in there. **

**-Girl you wouldn't expect**


	33. Chapter 33

Brothers

33

Ages

Hiro: 5  
>Tadashi: 20<p>

**So this is request from Creativity Major about how it's Father's day and it was just so cute of an idea and I HAD to use it (with my own little twist). Also, most of my chapters will have a baby Hiro and older Tadashi because Uponagraydawn's baby Hiro drawings on Tumblr (Which y'all should totally check out because they are beyond AH-DORABLE!), inspired me soooooo much. **

**I will still do SOME with Hiro being a little older because c'mon, who doesn't love an overly cocky and smartass Hiro? XD **

Hiro's POV

"My dad's a vet! He gets to look at cute little puppies and kittens all day!" I heard a girl say.

I looked down at the paper at my desk. It was just a dumb little thing explaining how Father's day would work. There was going to be a little party and everyone would get their dad's to explain a little bit about their job.

"Psh whatever, my dad's a firefighter. He saves people!" A boy piped up with a cocky smile.

"Oh yeah? My dad's an astronaut!" Another boy said smugly.

"My works at the chocolate factory." A girl brags with her hand on her hips.

"OOOOOOOOHHHH." The class breathes in amazement.

"What about you Hiro?" Vanessa asked me. I gulped and tugged at the collar of my shirt.

"Well m-my aunt works at the Lucky Cat Café. I get free donuts for breakfast." I say unsurely.

"That's cool, but what's your dad too?" Mike asked.

"Umm, I don't have one." I say awkwardly, making myself busy with the macaroni craft we were supposed to be doing.

The class was quiet for a minute or two, but soon got talking again on what their dads did while I stayed silent.

Soon enough, the bell rang and everyone ran to their cubbies to store their project.

"Alright class, don't forget that Father's day is in two more days. Tomorrow is the last craft you will make to add to the gift basket you will all give your father's when the day comes!" Ms. Morgan reminded.

I stared at my macaroni sculpture of Baymax. Tadashi made me a plushie Baymax for my birthday last month, so I wanted to make one for him out of macaroni. I didn't want to brag, but I did a pretty good job. I hoped Tadashi would like it, but another part of me hurt. The part that said that this macaroni sculpture should go to dad, not Tadashi.

I tried to shake away the thought and waddle to my cubby when almost everyone else is gone. I open it and look at the two other things we made this past week.

On Monday, we were to write 'dad' out and then glue chocolate's on it. It was neat because the chocolates would spell the names. Mine was the only abnormal one though. Everyone else's said 'dad, daddy, or father'. Mine's said Dashi.

On Tuesday, we made cards for them. Again, everyone else wrote dad on theirs except me. I wrote Dashi's name again.

I added my macaroni sculpture to the collection with a sigh and closed it. I didn't really know what I was going to do when Father's day actually rolled around. I didn't want to give Tadashi my gifts on that day because that would imply that I celebrated Father's day when I so clearly don't.

I just slung my backpack on and headed out the door, but was stopped by Ms. Morgan.

"Hiro. You've forgotten your Father's day flyer on your desk. You don't want to forget to give that to your dad do you?" She reminded.

"Oh! Uh, yeah, you're right. Let me get that real quick." I say, grabbing the stupid flyer and shoving it in my pocket.

Ms. Morgan giggled. "Don't forget to get it to him now." She reminded with a wave.

"I won't, thanks." I say with a wave in response.

I head down the hall with a frown.

Stupid school. Stupid kids talking about their stupid dads. Stupid father's day. Stupid collages. Stupid macaroni art. Stupid cards. It's such a pointless holiday. People should appreciate their fathers every day. Not just on that one day.

I fully planned on trashing the flyer, but forgot to. Then Ms. Morgan reminded me and I couldn't throw it away in front of her. I'd just have to get rid of it when I got home.

I trudge outside until I see Tadashi. Seeing him made my sour mood disappear and I immediately smiled and ran to him.

"Dashi!" I cried, running into his arms. He opened them up as I did so and he swung me around.  
>"Hey bud! How's my favorite little bonehead?" He asked, ruffling my hair.<p>

"Ugh, Dashi! Hair!" I cried, swatting his hands away. He just laughed and started walking, carrying me.

"So how was school?" He asks. The smile vanished from my face and the bitter frown replaced it. I leaned my head on Tadashi shoulder and huffed.

"Rough day?" Tadashi asked knowingly.

"It was alright." I say noncommittally.

"Wanna talk about it?" He asked me.

"Not really. Just want something to eat." I say honestly.

"Like lasagna?" He asks with a smile in his voice.

"Aunt Cass made some?!" I ask in happiness.

"Yup. And I actually saved you some." He says.

"You're the best Dashi." I tell him.

"You're not so horrible yourself." He says as we enter the café.

I quickly rush to the kitchen, say hey to Aunt Cass and dive into the food. When I'm done, I jump up the stairs two at a time and shrug my backpack off. Feeing a crinkle from my pocket as I do so, I remember the flyer. I toss it in my trashcan quickly before anyone sees and collapse on my bed.

My head shoots up when I hear the door creak open.

"So what's up? You looked pretty depressed when I mentioned school earlier." Tadashi said.

"It's nothing. I'll forget about it by tomorrow." I assure him.

"Well, if you're sure." He says.

"I am." I tell him.

"Wanna play some super smash Bros. then?" He asks.

"Sure. Beating you always puts me in a good mood." I say, lightening up.

"Bring it on you limp noodle." He snorts, firing up the Wii.

*Page Break*

Tadashi's POV

When I get back home from dropping Hiro off at school the next day, I hang around our room for a while before I decide to tidy it up a bit. Hiro's a complete slob and I know he won't clean it by himself, so I help him out.

As I go to throw away an empty gummy bear package, I notice a bright yellow paper in Hiro's trashcan. It's impossible to miss because of its flashy color, so I fish it out and un-crumple it.

'Father's day party? So _that's _what made him upset the other day. Hmm.' I think to myself.

*Page Break*

Hiro's POV

The last dumb craft to make was a duct tape tie. I chose blue and green tape because those are Tadashi's favorite colors. I wasn't really into making this stupid craft and half-heartedly finished it. The only thing we did that I liked was the macaroni sculpture. I actually wanted to give Tadashi that one.

At the end of the day, I trudged to my cubby and practically shoved the stupid tie in with the rest of the things I made.

I waddled outside like I always do and ran to Tadashi. He always made me smile when I was upset.

"Dashi!" I say happily, running to him.

"How was school?" He asks with a smile.

I frown and sigh.

"It'll get better on Monday." I tell him. That was when I planned on giving him the Baymax sculpture. I decided not to give it to him on Father's day.

"Is there anything going on tomorrow at your school?" He asked innocently. A little _too_ innocently.

"N-no. Just a normal Friday." I tell him, not meeting his gaze.

He squeezed my hand lightly.

"Alright." he said tiredly.

*Page Break*

"Aunt Cass? Why are you dressed up?" I ask.

"I'm going to school with you!" She exclaims, pinching my cheek. I jump back and widen my eyes.

"What?! Why?" I ask in bewilderment.

"I may not be your father, but I do things your father would!" She says cheerily, grabbing my hand.

I appreciate what she's trying to do, but this is just going to be awkward. I can't bring my _aunt_ to the Father's day party. That'd be beyond embarrassing. But I couldn't just disappoint Aunt Cass like that.

"Ready?" She asks with a bright smile. I give her a light and forced one in response.

"Sure." I say as we head outside.

"So, how'd you find out about this anyways? I didn't tell you." I point out.

"I figured it out one way or another." She said with a wink.

"Dashi told you, didn't he?" I grumble.

Her silence is more than enough for an answer.

'How did he find out though?' I think.

When we get to school, we instantly get weird looks and I want to hide.

"Hiro, is this your dad?" Daniel asks with a laugh.

I run outside of the classroom and hide my face in my hands. I feel Aunt Cass come outside and sit down next to me.

"Honey, don't listen to him. You can have fun if you try." She tells me. I look up at her.  
>"Okay. I'll try." I whisper.<p>

"Good. Now come on. You and I are going to have the time of our lives." She says with determination, pulling me up and taking me back inside. People stare at us, but I try my best to ignore them.

Ms. Morgan quiets everyone down and smiles.

"Well now that everyone and their fathers are here, we can begin." She says, giving a strange look to Aunt Cass. This is so embarrassing.

"Before we have the dads explain what they do, we're going to play a few games. The first game will be held outside, so everyone head to the back of the school please." She announces as everyone scrambles to get outside.

Aunt Cass and I lag behind. When everyone finally gets outside, Ms. Morgan talks again.

"Okay, first game is an egg race. Everyone grab a spoon with an egg on it from the basket here." She says.

"Go on honey. Get one for us." Aunt Cass tells me. I waddle over to the basket and grab one. I force a smile, trying to have fun for Aunt Cass's sake.

"Okay now, run to your dads and hand them the egg. Then they have to run back and put the egg back in the basket without breaking it." Ms. Morgan explains. I really wished she'd quit saying the word 'dad'.

"On your marks, get set, GO!" She calls, and we're off. I'm not too fast, but I'm not the slowest either, so I'm the fourth person there and Aunt Cass starts her way back. She can't move too fast in her heels though and she's going slower than Mochi.

"C'mon Aunt Cass, faster!" I cheer. Fortunately, she picks up her pace, but unfortunately, she drops the egg and it cracks. I frown, but try not to let her see.

"The winner is Charlie and his father!" Ms. Morgan announces.

"Next up, we have soccer." Ms. Morgan says.

That proved to be a major flop too. Aunt Cass's heels were not proper outdoor activity approved and so we struck out there too.

"Now it's football, right?" Daniel asks excitedly.

"Erm, maybe we should skip football." Ms. Morgan says, giving a not so subtle look at Aunt Cass.

"Aww, why not?" Sarah asks.

"Yeah I really wanted to!" Chaz exclaims

I feel horrible that Ms. Morgan's cancelling it because of me. I feel my lip tremble and I run into the building wordlessly.

"Hiro! Come back!" I hear Aunt Cass yell weakly, following me. For the first time today, I'm glad she's wearing heels.

I stop running when I reach the front of the school. I plop myself down on the bench, hoping that when Aunt Cass gets back, she'll take pity on me and take us home. I hate Father's day so much.

"Hiro?" I hear Aunt Cass say softly.

I'm curious as to how she got here so fast and I see that her shoes are gone and her socks are covered in grass stains.

"I'm sorry Aunt Cass." I say, looking down.

"You're sorry? Oh! I was going to apologize. Hiro I'm so sorry this didn't work out." She says sadly.

"It's fine. I didn't really want to celebrate anyways." I tell her.

"I wish I could make it all better. Tadashi actually wanted to come, but college…" She trailed off. I give her a weak smile.

"It's fine Aunt Cass. I get it." I reassure her.

"I'll go bring the car up front. You sit tight, okay?" She asks me.

I nod and she takes her leave.

A few seconds later, I hear the door open.

"Bonehead?! What are you doing out of class?!" I hear it exclaim. I jump up at the voice and turn my head quick enough to get whiplash.

"Dashi?!" I ask in confusion.

"What are you doing here? Let's get to that party!" He exclaims, picking me up.

"B-but Aunt Cass, and college and wh-wha?!" I sputter. He chuckles at me.

"Careful now Hiro, don't want you hurting yourself." He snorts.

"I thought you were at school." I say.

"I was, but then I realized that mu baby bro needed me. Now let's go. I already talked to Aunt Cass. She was outside when I got here." Tadashi explains, running to my classroom.

"Wait!" I cry.

"What is it?" he asks.

"I-I don't want to go to the dumb party." I sniffle, burying my head in his chest.

"Oh Hiro. Don't worry. I'm sure we'll have a great time." He says soothingly.

"No we won't!" I whisper shout in a baby voice. I just know it won't.

"What if I promise you'll have fun?" he asks with a dopey smile.

I look at him uncertainly.

He extends his pinky to me and I accept it.

"Okay." I say softly.

We walk in and they're just about to explain their jobs.

I bite my lip.

'Dashi doesn't work. He's in school! But he promised it'd be okay. I can trust him.' I think, taking a deep breath.

Ms. Morgan's going down the line of alphabetical order and when she finally gets to my name, I'm freaking out. Tadashi gives me a calming look and grabs my hand. "Breathe." He whispers. I obey and we head to the front of the classroom. I can see them all staring at Tadashi in question.

"Th-this is my brother. His name is Tadashi, but he's Dashi to me. H-h-he…" I trail off, unable to finish, unsure of how.

He squeezes my arm in reassurance and pats my shoulder soothingly.

"Like Hiro said, I'm his older brother, Tadashi. I may not have a job yet, but I go to med school and I'm learning to become a doctor. Soon, I'll help kids all over the place. I try to help Hiro all the time already and god knows he needs all the help he can get." He says teasingly, getting the entire class to laugh. I smile gratefully and Tadashi winks at me.

"Thank you Mr. Hamada." Ms. Morgan says.

When we're done, Ms. Morgan announces that we can give our dads our gifts now. I fidget around nervously.

"Hey, it's okay if you didn't make anything." Tadashi assures me.

I give him a light smile.

"Uh, wait here." I say, running to my cubby. I pull out the gifts I used to think were lame and hand them to Tadashi, saving the macaroni sculpture for last.

"Wow! You made all these for me?!" He asks, genuinely surprised.

"Who else would I make them for?" I ask him in an obvious tone.

"Wow. Hiro, thank you!" He says, hugging me.  
>"All right. You're welcome, now stop being mushy." I tell him, moving away.<p>

"I did save best for last." I say nervously, handing him the Baymax sculpture. He took it gently from my tiny hands and observed it as if it were extremely important. I bit my lip in nervousness. I really hoped he'd like it.

"You made this? For me?" He asked with a dopey grin plastered on his face. I smile back.  
>"Of course." I reply.<p>

"You're the best brother ever, you know that, right?" He asks, ruffling my hair. I glare at him when he did.

Fixing my hair, I shoot him a tooth gapped grin.

"Thanks Dashi, but you're the bestEST brother in the world. And today, you were TaDADshi!" I exclaim with a giggle. He laughed too and pulled me in for a noogie to my dismay.

"Seriously though, thanks Dashi. What you did…it was incredible. You really are the best." I sat softly, kicking my foot around.

"Anytime." He says, picking me up and taking me home.

I don't really hate Father's day too much anymore.

*page Break*

**Sorry I didn't update in so long! **

**-Girl you wouldn't expect**


	34. Chapter 34

Brothers

34

Ages

Hiro: 4

Tadashi: 15

**So this is another request by Creativity Major (Who had a lot of ideas btw (Not that I mind****) where one of Tadashi's inventions hurt Hiro and that's why he only builds things that can't cause harm. You recommended it involving lasers and I tried my best to use that and I did, but I added a little twist. The lasers lead up to the "harm". Hope you like it. **

Normal POV

"Hiro! Want to see what I made?!" Tadashi asked eagerly. Hiro looked up from his coloring book with a mildly bored expression.

"Not weally. Do you think SpongeBob would look cooler if I colored him blue with red holes?" He asked, lifting up the coloring book.

"Why are you wearing so many band aids?" Tadashi asked, ignoring the comment about SpongeBob and observing Hiro's band aid clad body.

Hiro rolled his eyes which didn't go unnoticed by Tadashi, but he chose to ignore it. "It's fun and they're cool looking." The toddler said in an obvious tone.

Tadashi practically shoved the robot he made to Hiro, waiting for the younger boy to get excited, ignoring his odd band aid fetish. Hiro toyed around with it in his fingers and handed it back to Tadashi almost too quickly.

"Well?" Tadashi asked anxiously.

"Yeah, it's alright." Hiro said with a shrug, grabbing the blue marker and proceeding to color SpongeBob.

Tadashi eyed his robot himself before finally losing his smile. If his invention couldn't even entertain his four year old brother, who _would_ it impress?

"What's wrong with it?" The older boy asked, needing to know why it failed to interest him.

"It's not that cool." Hiro said, focusing on his marker strokes more than the conversation he was having with Tadashi.

"What would make it cool then?" Tadashi asked curiously. 'I'm losing to band aids and a SpongeBob coloring book.' He thought pathetically.

Hiro instantly looked up from his coloring and dropped the marker. A bright light made its way into his eyes. For the first time since Tadashi entered the room, he looked interested in him. Tadashi could imagine little gears turning around in his head.

"Like if it could flip or do some tricks! Maybe it could fight with karate moves! Or, maybe it could freeze things! OHHH! What if it shot LASERS from its eyes or something?!" Hiro gushed, lost in his own world.

'Flips and karate moves huh?' Tadashi thought, retreating to the garage for supplies.

Hiro was still thinking about lasers and such when he noticed Tadashi was gone. "Huh, I guess I'll just paint SpongeBob's holes red anyways." He said noncommittally, finishing his coloring. 'What if SpongeBob could shoot lasers?' he thought offhandedly as he colored.

*Page Break*

"Ready to see my robot now?!" Tadashi asked eagerly.

"Sure I guess." Hiro said, closing his coloring book.

"You're still coloring that?" Tadashi questioned off topic.

"Nope. Just making adjustments to the page." Hiro said with a wave of his hand.

"Now show me your lame robot." Hiro said childishly.

"Feast your eyes on this." Tadashi bragged, showing his robot to Hiro.

"What's it do?" Hiro asked.

"This." Tadashi said, placing it on the floor. The older brother grabbed a piece of wood from his desk drawer and held out a remote control. When he pressed the red button, the robot preformed a hammer fist and split the wood in half.

Hiro looked mildly interested.

"Not bad." He said.

"Not bad?! Okay Mr. Unimpressed, check this out." Tadashi said, pressing the blue button. The robot side kicked the two pieces of wood into four in mere seconds. Hiro nodded in approval.

"Not bad." He repeated. To Tadashi's dismay, Hiro still looked pretty bored with his robot.

"What's wrong? It's still not good enough?" Tadashi asked, exasperated.

Hiro gave Tadashi a semi lazy smirk. "You're robot isn't bad." He started. "But you know what would make it wicked?" Hiro asked.

"What?" Tadashi asked.

"Weally wanna know?" He asked.

"Yes yes! Tell me already!" Tadashi cried, getting frustrated.

Hiro opened his coloring book and showed him the picture of SpongeBob. The toddler had drawn in lasers coming from the sponge's eyes that were slicing through a building. Hiro himself was smiling smugly, awaiting Tadashi's reaction.

"That's certainly something, but it's not really safe now is it?" Tadashi asked.

"Well I don't care. It's cool. What if there was a robot that shot lasers?!" Hiro cried out, his eyes lighting up in wonder again.

Tadashi had a thoughtful expression on his face. 'Alright little bro. if it's lasers you want, it's lasers you'll get.' He thought, tinkering away at his karate bot.

*Page Break*

"Are you ready for this Hiro?" Tadashi asked.

Hiro finished applying another band aid on already band aid clad arm, looked up at Tadashi, and shrugged. "I guess so." He said unenthusiastically.

Tadashi swung out his robot and placed it in front of Hiro. "Hold this." The older brother said, handing Hiro a scrap of metal. Tadashi pressed a green button on his remote control and the robot shot out a bright red beam of light, slicing the metal clean in half. It was so close to hitting Hiro, but Tadashi didn't notice.

"What did you think?!" Tadashi asked. Hiro was wide eyed.

"That's so sick! Oh my gosh! How did you even DO that?!" The boy asked excitedly, toying with the robot in his hands. Tadashi looked pleased that Hiro was finally interested in something he made for once.

The older boy gladly explained the science behind his robot and Hiro listened, soaking in every word.

"So what do you think I should make next?" Tadashi asked.

"Hmm. A robot that can shoot little sparks of fire!" Hiro cried out in excitement.

"I'm on it!" Tadashi said in determination, heading to the garage.

*page Break*

That night, Hiro had the urge to see what his brother made. Curiosity got the better of him and he snuck out of his and Tadashi's shared room to the garage.

Opening the door quietly, the toddler slowly tiptoed inside and tried to make something (anything) out of the pitch black darkness he was receiving.

Hiro thought he saw the outline of a robot and reached over to grab it, however his aim was off and he accidently knocked it over. Unbeknownst to the toddler, the robot was not done and he had accidently set it off. A sharp pain erupted in his leg and he screeched in pain.

"What happened?! Hiro, are you okay?!" Aunt Cass yelled, bursting in the garage. The boy was too occupied in his sobbing to reply and his aunt hurriedly reached for the light switch.

She was not pleased to see her youngest nephew sprawled on the floor, covered in band aids.

"Hiro honey, shh, calm down. You're okay. Just tell me what happened." Aunt Cass cooed. It didn't work though. The only person who could calm him down when he was in pain was Tadashi.

Speaking of the older boy, he had just groggily walked down the stairs and noticed Hiro crying. Rushing to his little brother's side, Tadashi laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. He observed Hiro until his eyes settled on a reddening portion on Hiro's leg.

"Oh Hiro. You didn't touch my unfinished robot did you?" He groaned. Hiro sniffled. "I'm s-sowwy D-Dashi. I w-won't d-do it a-again." He managed between his crying.

"Hey now, it's okay. No crying. C'mon Hiro, be strong." Tadashi whispered to him, cradling the boy close.

Hiro just clutched onto Tadashi's shirt and cried harder, muffling his sobs by crashing his face into his older brother.

"How bad, one through ten?" Tadashi asked.

"s-s-six?" Hiro hiccupped uncertainly.

"That's pretty bad. C'mon, let's get you fixed up." Tadashi said, picking up his baby brother. Hiro obliged, too much in pain to complain about being babied.

"I'm gonna put some cold water on it." He whispered to Aunt Cass who nodded and went back to bed with a loud yawn.

"D-Dashi? Am I g-g-gonna d-die n-now?" Hiro asked, sucking on his thumb in fright.

"Not on my watch you're not. Where'd you get an idea like that from?" Tadashi asked with a huge frown.

"Mommy and daddy looked afraid before they died. I just thought…" Hiro trailed off.

Tadashi instantly felt horrible. Something his own hands created had frightened Hiro. From then and there, he vowed to only make things that would help Hiro, no matter how uninteresting his brother thought they were. His baby bro's safety was what he prioritized over all.

Tadashi wetted a cloth and pressed it to the burn that formed on Hiro's leg. The toddler winced at first, but after a tear or two, he held it together nicely.

"Better?" Tadashi asked.

"A bit." Hiro sniffled, wiping at his eyes with his sleeves. Tadashi knew exactly what would make Hiro feel better and he ran to his room to grab it. Holding up what he brought, Hiro gave a wide, gap toothed grin.

Tadashi applied the dark purple band aid on the burn after putting Vaseline on it so it wouldn't burn when Hiro wanted to peel it off.

"Much better Dashi. You should be a doctor." Hiro mused. Tadashi gave a thoughtful look.

"Maybe not a doctor. But I could build a robot doctor. It could help people!" Tadashi mused.

"So a robotic…nurse?" Hiro asked, cocking his head to the side.

"Sure, I guess." Tadashi said, already slightly disappointed that it didn't interest Hiro.

"That's so cool Dashi!" Hiro exclaimed. Tadashi was taken aback.

"Really?" he asked with a raised eyebrow, bracing himself for a snarky response.

"Yeah! It can ask people how they feel on a scale of one to ten like you do Dashi! And maybe even have defibrillators as arms! OOHHH! And give band aids and gummy bears to people!" Hiro exclaimed, waving his hands excitedly in the air.

Tadashi chuckled. "You mean lollipops?" he asked.

"Well, that works too." Hiro said with a shrug.  
>"What if he could give band aids with gummy bears on them?" Tadashi asked.<p>

"Aw! That's be super sick Dashi!" Hiro said excitedly.

"You really think so?" Tadashi asked, perking up. He was beyond glad that Hiro liked the idea.

"Totally! Way cooler than lasers! That'd be the most amazing thing ever!" Hiro said, applying the band aid on his leg.

"Alright. I guess that's my next project." Tadashi said, picking up Hiro.

"You know what'd be cooler than the robot though?" Hiro asked.

"What?" Tadashi asked with a yawn.

"You always being here to take care me." Hiro admitted.

"Thanks bro. that actually means a lot." Tadashi said with a smile. He tucked Hiro in bed and then headed to his own, yawning on his way there.

"Night Dashi." Hiro said sleepily, all pain of his leg forgotten.

"Good night Hiro." Tadashi returned, falling asleep right after.


End file.
